Back Without Regrets
by Jiang-sama
Summary: Zuko is sent back in time by the Spirits to fix his life choices and start over, without regrets. Little does he know of the spirits true plans for him and the world... and whole of humanity. Time Travel AU with major plot changes, lots of problems, Azula being nice, characters over thinking things, happy endings and a different end goal.
1. Chapter 1

**AUTHOR NOTE**

**So, this is my first ATLA story. For those of you who are familiar with this story, rest assured I adopted it from LightDas. I enjoyed reading and writing and it is my hope you enjoy reading it**

* * *

Fire Lord Zuko was strolling through his kingdom, in what was one of the Fire Nation's better towns. The roads were stoned and well built; the houses stood firmly, built with strong, hardened bricks. The people that walked on the streets did not wear rags; but decent, fire nation robes.

It was a prosperous city and the residents had high positions and good jobs.

Zuko walked slowly on the sidewalk, admiring the city's development. This was one of the few cities that had not suffered the war's wrath.

Walking without a palanquin earned him quite a few strange glances from the people around him. It was fun, Zuko thought, to see how people reacted to the Fire Lord casually striding on the streets among the people without any guards or visible security.

Some would blanch with their mouths in a perfect 'o' shape; some would scoff and whisper to their friend about imposters. Others would smile at him while some would look awkward, as if not sure whether they should kneel, bow, or continue on their way. Some would stare at him, wide eyed, smiling, bursting with admiration.

And in a rare instance, one would scowl and glare at him.

Despite the lack of security, no one approached the Fire Lord.

Of course, Zuko wasn't foolish enough not to bring security here. The world was a dangerous place after all, who knew when a vengeful assassin would sneak up behind the unknowing Fire Lord and kill him. That would be catastrophic. No, his security was there, just not in plain sight.

Zuko just smiled at everyone, awkward himself; though the expressions made up for the hours of paperwork that had gone on to this trip.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a kid. He barely looked eleven; skinny and short, with bedraggled hair but expensive garments. The kid was scowling at him and glaring fiercely.

He felt his security tensing. Zuko held up his hand and motioned them not to do anything. He kept on walking; uncomfortably aware of the glare the young boy was sending his back.

In a flash, he felt the kid pick up a rock. Zuko inwardly groaned. He motioned to his security again, warning them not to do anything rash.

The rock flew out of the kids hand and towards Zuko. Instinctively, he made a grab for it. He felt a sharp sting in his palm, indicating that he had successfully caught the flailing object.

The woman besides the boy gasped. She held him tightly, as Zuko approached them. Her face had lost all its color and her hands were deathly white as they clutched her son's robes. Zuko heard his mother severely reprimanding the boy, with a fearful look in her eye.

It was only after a moment that Zuko realized that the fearful look was aimed at him.

"My son is extremely sorry," the woman said, her voice quivering. Her head was bowed low. "Please", Zuko heard an edge to her voice, "he's just eight, don't take him away."

Zuko glanced at her. Did the woman really think that he'd punish a child for speaking out? Did she think he was heartless?

Just then, he remembered that fateful Agni Kai. The Agni Kai which had changed his entire life. The battle that had scarred him forever. The fight that had been fought because Zuko, a thirteen-year old child, had spoken up against the authority of the Fire Lord.

He suddenly felt sick.

No, he would never even think, consider and approve, of reprimanding or punishing this young lad.

He knelt down on one knee in front of the boy. Dimly, he was aware of the woman's panicked breaths, afraid of what he would do to the child.

"Your loyalty is admiral," said Zuko, after a while of thinking. He didn't really know what to say to the young boy who was staring at him with pure hatred in his eyes.

"But it's directed at the wrong person."

He would know. He still had so many regrets. Too many regrets which would not let him sleep at night.

He would make sure that this boy had no such regrets.

"I'll tell you a story," he said. The boy's eyes widened in surprise. He probably wasn't expecting this. Expecting to be reprimanded perhaps, thought Zuko, as he continued,

"It's a story of a young boy, just like you, who spoke out in a war meeting"

And thus, Zuko proceeded to tell him of that day. Of that scar. Of the truth about Fire Lord Ozai. As he told the boy, he grew indignant.

"But the plan was evil", the boy protested. "They shouldn't have – "

Zuko nodded. "You're absolutely right. But the Fire Lord would not see to reason. He ordered the child to fight an Agni Kai with the general." His voice was emotionless. As if he was actually talking about another person.

The boy looked at him eagerly now. "Really? Did the boy win? Did he save the division?"

Zuko smiled sadly at him. The boy reminded him too much of his own eight-year old self.

"No. What the boy did not realize, was that since he had spoken against the general in the Fire Lord's council, he had disrespected, not the general, but the Fire Lord himself."

The boy's eyes widened in shock, "Wh – You mean the boy had to fight Fire Lord Ozai?"

Again, Zuko nodded. "Unfortunately, yes. The boy got down to his knees and begged for mercy. For forgiveness. He told the Fire Lord that he was sorry and that he only had his country's best interests at heart. He was thirteen. A few years older than you"

The boy looked him in the eye. "Then?" he half whispered.

"The boy looked up at him, tears streaking down his face. The Fire Lord extended a hand towards him, as if to wipe his tears." Zuko's voice took a low pitch, as his audience held their breath as to what would happen next.

"And he burnt him. Burnt half of his face off. The boy screamed and writhed for several painful minutes, until he fell, blissfully, unconscious."

The woman stared at him with a peculiar look in her eye. Then, as if seeing his scar for the first time, shrank back in horror. She had realized his story was not merely a story. She had realized who the boy in the story was.

Her son hadn't though.

"Fire Lord Ozai was evil," he said fiercely, "That boy deserved to have a happy and fulfilling life with many friends."

"He does", Zuko assured him. "I made sure of it."

It was only several years later that the boy realized who the boy in the story had been.

"Take care of him", Zuko told his mother. "Make sure he doesn't have any regrets."

The woman nodded determinedly. Fire Lord Zuko left with two new supporters to his reign.

* * *

"I doubt he is the one", a raspy voice said, "He is too soft-hearted. He will never go through with our plans."

The room in which the voice spoke in was dimly lit. A huge table extended from one end of the room to the other, propped up by several legs. Several beings of different a nature – old and young men and women alike, some with a mix of humanoid and beastlike like features, and others in beast form – sat, leaning against the table. All their faces were grim, as if discussing a grave matter.

"Yes, I agree. His sister seems like a better option," said another.

You could see through their bodies. They were almost transparent.

"But she is crazy"

"I agree. Her sanity was lost while fighting her brother and the water-bender."

"She is a huge risk"

There was more banter and disagreements, and, as the council was starting to talk in raised voices, there was a thump on the table.

"Enough!" the Fire God, Agni, bellowed. His voice was deep and soothing, yet it held an intimidating aura around it. Just like fire. The council fell silent "We will not send back the Fire Princess," he said firmly, "She would cause too much chaos"

"I agree with Agni," said the silky soft voice of the Ocean Spirit. A cascade of sky-blue hair swept across her back, embroidered with jewels resembling sea shells. "She is a risk, we cannot afford to take. Her mind is broken and using her would make things more difficult than before. Although slightly worse than her, the Prince is highly capable of doing the task we require him to do"

"But he'll never follow through with our plans," protested a nameless spirit.

"That's why we shall deceive him," Agni said.

"I still do not approve of this plan," a new voice popped up. It came from a humanoid with badger mole features, a bushy tale and large eyes. The Earth God.

"It is for the greater good," said Agni.

"I don't agree with this plan either," said a bald spirit, his skin the shade of the night sky with stars and body adorned with blue-white tattoos.

"I respect all forms of life. Although the Air-Nation people were wiped out a hundred years ago," he cast a brief, bitter look at Agni before continuing, "I have no doubt that Avatar Aang will repopulate them once more. We have no reason to do this"

"I too am uncertain about this," spoke out Yue in a quiet voice, "I have no doubt that this will be for the greater good of both spirits and people alike, but won't the consequences of our actions be too great? And why not trust Avatar Aang with repopulating the airbenders or giving people airbending? We all witnessed him take former Fire Lord Ozai's bending away"

"No," said the Ocean Spirit "Avatar Aang has evaded his responsibilities for too long. His actions not only caused loss in the physical realm, but to us as well in the spirit world (the Ocean Spirit held a solemn look for the loss of her sister). Trusting him with this task will invite more risk than the good we want to bring. Moreover, the Avatar is a bridge between what is of spirit and what is of the physical realm. Yes Aang severed the connection between Ozai and his bending, but he can not give bending of any kind or form that fate itself has not granted. I do not blame you for your concerns, successor of Tui, for you are young and yet to understand the ways of the spirits

"However, it is time we take matters into our own hands and bring balance back to the world that the Avatar has not," her tone held a finality, "Who votes for this plan?"

Hands went up, as a sorrowful look went across the face of the Earth God.

Fire Lord Zuko was in for a ride.

* * *

Fire Lord Zuko was exhausted.

It had been a few days since he had had that talk with the mother and her son. And after that, he did not have any time to spare. The day was full of endless paperwork, subduing angry generals, listening to the complaints of his reign and ramblings of Sozin's greatness and quelling the supporters of Ozai. It meant that the day had been tiresome and irritating. He hated post-war.

Change was not so easily brought, Zuko reminded himself, remembering the struggles he went through to learn his father's true intentions and to change himself.

Just like his younger self, these people had grown up believing the lies of the Fire Nation. It didn't mean they were bad or immoral, like his father. The little boy he had met days ago proved that.

The little boy.

Zuko still remembered what he had said. That boy deserved to have a happy and fulfilling life with many friends.

He had assured him that he had many friends and that he was happy.

But he had some doubts.

This didn't mean that Zuko was unhappy. Contrary to that, he had never been this happy since his mother disappeared. He was content and satisfied with his life. Why wouldn't he be? He had great friends, genuine people who loved him and he was doing what he had dreamt of doing for years.

But he had so many regrets.

Too many regrets.

As he plopped down on the bed, deep in his thoughts. His top knot broke to reveal his messy hair, which lay straggled on the bed. He didn't bother to change. His royal robes were made of the most comfortable fabric, light and airy.

He still had nightmares of his mother, his scar, his sister, his father. Nightmares of the what-ifs. Nightmares of the consequences of his choices. Nightmares upon nightmares that would consume his sleep at night.

Just. So. Many. Regrets.

The assassination attempts, the unending riots, the protesters to his throne, the disapproving citizens, gossip and rumors and the suspicious glances had worn down his confidence. Occasionally, one of his friends would come to assure him that he was doing the right thing.

Zuko found himself looking forward to those visits. Found himself yearning for them. He still wished Mai hadn't broken up with him. He wished the Kyoshi warriors had not left. He wished that Uncle Iroh had not opened his shop in Ba Sing Se. He wished that the gang would go out and go camping again.

He wished he wasn't so alone.

Frustrated, he let out a loud groan and punched the air. The candles in his room flared loudly, before calming down. He still had not learned to control his explosive temper yet. Getting up into a sitting position, Zuko stretched his arms above his head and rolled his shoulders.

As he got to his feet, he felt a sudden cold gripping sensation. The floor began to sway underneath his feet. What was this? Zuko thought frantically. This was almost how he felt when he had been hit by lightning. Light, dizzy and close to death. Was it poison? But the palace's chefs were extremely trusted. A million other possibilities crossed his mind.

But he did not expect this.

A chill ran down his spine, as the world corrected itself.

When his eyes became focused, he was staring at the God of Fire himself.

Immediately, Zuko kneeled. An act foreign to him after becoming the Fire Lord. Agni had long hair, tied up in a top knot. His very presence warmed up the room. The god's eyes were distinctive, they were golden. Not like the golden eyes that the citizens had, but flaming golden. It was as if fire burned in his eyes. He wore the same robes that the Fire Lord was wearing.

"Fire Lord Zuko, son of Lady Ursa and Ozai," he voiced. There was something calming about it. Zuko didn't flinch when the spirit said Ozai.

"The spirits have a very important mission for you"

"Wh-What?" Zuko blurted out, before realizing how rude it sounded.

If Agni was offended, he did not show it.

"I am Agni, the Fire God."

Zuko already knew that, but to hear it from the deity himself was awe-inspiring.

"The spirits have assigned you with a very important task," Agni repeated, "You have to repopulate the Air nomads"

Zuko choked back a gasp of disbelief. The God wanted him to do what now? Several unsavoury pictures passed his mind which he never wished to think of ever again. How was he supposed to do that? Shouldn't that be Aang's job?

"H-huh?" Zuko could have smacked himself for his poor communication skills.

"Yes, I am sure you must be confu – "

"Shouldn't you ask Aang?" Zuko cut him off and instantly regretted it. Why did he interrupt a god. A god for goodness' sake. To his relief, Agni didn't look angry. He looked almost amused. "How am I supposed to repopulate the air nomads? He's the one with a girlfriend and airbending. He is the one who was an air monk."

"I am afraid that the method," Agni smiled at him, "you speak of will take several generations. Unless he is willing to be with several different women at once," Zuko flushed at that. Aang would never betray Katara. Agni coughed and continued "It has already been more than a hundred years. The spirits are impatient to restore balance."

"So, how am I supposed to help?"

At this point, Zuko didn't care how informal he sounded. Agni had already established that he didn't mind and formal conversation had never been his strong suit, despite being the Fire Lord for two years.

"You must gather spiritual energy from the past. We will send you back in time."

A beat. There was utter silence. The only thing that moved were the flickering flames of the candle.

"No!" Zuko said when it became clear that the spirit was serious about his offer. "We finally defeated the Fire Lord and we are trying our best to restore balance. I am not going back in time to relive that hell of a life again." He could hear the quiver in his own voice as he spoke the sentence. The quiver that told the whole story.

"But don't you also have regrets?" Agni's voice lowered an octave. "Things that you wish you could have prevented? Lu Ten's death? Azula's madness? Your own choices?" Zuko choked at that. "If you accept this offer, the spirits will not interfere in what you change in your personal life"

It was tempting. Oh so disgustingly tempting. Zuko knew that he would lose everything. But he would have a chance to gain it back. To live a life without the endless regrets. To prevent so many deaths and hardships.

"But… why me?"

"The spirits believe that you have the most… regrets."

That settled it. Zuko stood up from his kneeling position and looked at the deity in his flaming eye. "I'll do it".

For once, Agni's smile was not kind. He grinned widely and Zuko had his first doubt about his decision.

"That is good, Fire Lord Zuko. The spirits are with you."

* * *

Zuko's vision was enveloped in darkness. The ground had opened up, he was falling and falling. Instinctively, he reached for something, anything, to slow down his fall. When that failed, he tried to propel himself with his fire. No use, he couldn't feel his fire. Ignoring the panicking feeling that consumed him, he breathed deeply and braced for impact, sure that he would die.

Then, he reminded himself of the conversation he had had with Agni. He was sure that the spirits would not let him die just after assigning him this job.

_Calm down_, he thought to himself.

Suddenly, everything stopped. Zuko's vision had colour once again. He blinked twice. His new body felt unnaturally light and the world looked large and endearing. He was in the familiar hallways of his childhood home.

He sprinted past the hallways and towards his room, before stopping and realizing that he was going the wrong way.

The Fire Lord's room was not his room anymore.

Taking several steps back, he headed towards his actual room. The servants bowed in front of him. It made Zuko feel uneasy. In his own palace, he had urged the servants not to bow at him every time he passed the halls.

Slamming the door shut, he looked at the mirror. He stared at it with a strange fascination he hadn't done so in years. The face staring back at him was familiar and yet felt foreign to him. He still had a lean jaw, if not slightly chubby. His hair was done in a top knot and he wore red, fire nation robes. He was cute, if not handsome at the age of seven.

But Zuko didn't care about that. His fingers made their way up to his left cheek. Both his eyes were large and wide open and not fixed in a permanent glare. There was no angry red mark. His skin was smooth. The rough feeling his fingers had come to associate with his left side were gone.

Still in a daze, Zuko failed to hear footsteps signalling of someone entering his room.

"Well, well, well," he heard a voice say, one he remembered so well. The kind of voice he had come to associate with trouble. It didn't make sense, but the part where his lightning scar had once been shuddered beneath his robes.

"Zuzu. Of course you like to look at yourself? You've always been so handsome after all," her voice was teasing, yet it held an undertone of mockery.

Memories flashed by him. Her betrayal on the ship when she had promised to give him what he yearned for. Her aiming at the waterbender. Her laugh when he had screamed, when his father had burned him. Her honeyed words. Her urging him to betray his uncle. An anger passed by him. He had thought he had learned to control his temper.

He was wrong.

"Shut up, Azula," he practically yelled.

A flash of emotion passed in Azula's eyes. A brief moment of hurt. His younger self might have missed it, but he didn't. It made his stomach knot up.

But, Azula had done so many bad things. Why should he be sorry?

"Fine, Zuzu," she said bitterly, "Go play with mother."

She turned her heel and stalked off. Her hurt was evident in her tone. Again, Zuko felt guilty. He shook his head. This Azula was not the same Azula of his world. This Azula hadn't betrayed him, or hurt him or did anything to him really. Well, except for one-upping him in almost every class.

She didn't deserve it.

Quickly, his decision was made. He sprinted after her and grabbed her shoulder to turn her around. Azula tried to throw him off, but ineffectually.

"I'm sorry, Zula," the old nickname seemed strange to his tongue, "I've just had a lot on my mind"

His words were sincere, and he could only hope she saw it too.

"I don't care," she huffed and sneered at him with petulance that could only be seen from a 4-year old.

"But I wanted to tell you that I'm sorry."

"You did that," she pointed out.

"No, I meant," Zuko took a deep breath and continued.

"I'm kinda sorry for uh… ignoring you. Like, I did that right? I think it was because you were better than me," he spoke all at once. Zuko didn't even realize what he was saying.

"And uh…. I wanted to say I'm sorry….for that. Not for being a better bender, I mean because I was ignoring you… And I was confused. Because Oz – I mean Father always liked you more. And I was uh… jealous. But I hope…," Zuko faltered when he saw the expression on Azula's face. Her lips were pressed together, as if she was containing a laugh.

"Zuzu," she taunted, not in a mean way, "You're a dork"

But he could see she looked flushed. As if the compliment meant a lot to her. He felt like smiling. His compliment meant a lot to her.

What exactly had he sacrificed because of petty jealousy?

No matter. He'd work to fix it this time.

"You're a great firebender," he said, as he saw her practically glow with the praise.

"Wish I could say the same about you," she said, eyeing him for a reaction, one that would tell her that he didn't mean those words. Two years ago, the jab would have stung. But now, he simply laughed. After a moment, his sister started laughing with him too.

Azula turned to leave. Zuko realized how much he had missed this. The friendly banter they used to have before firebending lessons came in the way of it all. This timeline, he swore, he would not let her descend into madness.

He closed the doors. He needed to concentrate. If there was something that Sokka had taught him, it was to plan ahead.

And he desperately needed a plan.

The two candles he placed in front of him flickered and glowed. It was nostalgic, reminding him of the time he had spent on the ship with his crew and Uncle. He took a deep breath. He first needed to know his age.

He glanced up at the calendar and gathered that he was six years old. Six years. He still had plenty of time to do what he wanted to do. And he would do many things. So many things. He would make sure that this life was one without regrets.

_Breath in. Breath out._

He needed to get stronger. He had an advantage for that. It made him feel a little guilty; he had cheated his years and techniques. But he didn't care about that. His life had already been filled with a lot of suffering. Besides, he would need the experience if he wanted to execute any of his plans. Luckily for him, his first one was around four years away.

_Breathe in. Feel your chi flowing. Breath out._

He needed his father's favor. He needed the Fire Lord's approval and blessing. He needed to use his power. It would give him an advantageous position to quell some of the Fire Nation ways from the inside.

_Breath in. Breath out._

No. He definitely did not want his father's approval for the same reasons as he had before. That's what he assured himself, again and again. He didn't yearn for his love like when he was younger. He just needed to proclaim himself worthy so that the people he actually loved could be happy.

_Breath in. Feel your chi. Breath out._

Azula. He had seen how she was when she was younger. Zuko was convinced that he could save her from the madness that would threaten to consume her in the near future. He would fix their relationship for good. He would get her on his side. Somehow.

_Breath in. Breath out._

Lu Ten. Zuko didn't care about what it entailed if he saved him. All he knew was that he would rescue his cousin from death. He would not let Uncle Iroh feel that same pain ever again. He didn't know what this would mean for him. Would Uncle Iroh still be willing to betray his brother if his son was still alive? Zuko didn't think about this.

_Breath in. Feel your chi. Breath out._

His mother. He swore that he would not let her disappear again. Never again. He would make sure that Ozai was defeated and that Ursa got back to her old lover from her childhood. His half sister would still be born, albeit a bit earlier.

_Breath in. Breath out._

Zuko stopped at that.

After all of this was done, then he'd make his way to Avatar Aang. He knew that the last airbender lay frozen in ice; the Gaang had told him everything. He would make sure that Aang got out way before intended.

But first. He needed to get stronger. Much, much stronger.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N**

**Hello Everybody.**

**Thank you to everyone who reviewed.**

**Again this is my first ATLA story and I welcome criticism as well as reviews.**

**I have seen the questions on possible pairings, and I am undecided. One of the ships that might sail will be Zutara because it's my favourite. I apologise to anyone who looked forward to Kataang. But anyways, ships will unfold as the story goes on, I mean, there are so many possibilities to work with you know.**

**For the record, Zuko is six-years old and Azula is four, well for now that is. I think you'll find that they're a lot more mature than normal children (Zuko is justified, but Azula is... well... yeah).**

* * *

Azula had just finished her lessons with her tutor.

Her heart was beating giddily and the swelling feeling in her chest meant that she felt extremely happy. Not that she showed it, her face was as emotionless as ever and nobody noticed that she had not yelled at the servants when they had scrambled out of her way.

Her flames were crimson red. Not the joyfully bright yellow which most of her peers produced; nor the endearing orange flames which were expected of an average adult but crimson red. Pure raging red. Red like the blood of her enemies. Red like the Fire Nation.

Red like her father.

A color that only few masters could produce. Not even her tutors could produce fire so red.

Then again, they were all incompetent idiots anyway.

Her steps had a light skip to them, as she strolled down the palace hallways and to her room. If anybody noticed, they didn't mention it.

Just then, she heard harsh breathing and loud groans from the courtyard. She strained her ears, and she heard thumps, as the person she was eavesdropping to performed stances and the faint swishing of fire as they were released.

A million possibilities passed through her tactical mind on who it could be, ranging from a potential assassin to a very dramatic reveal by Uncle Iroh. She climbed on the railings, for the height of even a six-year old was not enough to see the courtyard. It was rather embarrassing, but it would be fixed with time.

And she saw him.

Zuko.

And she stared at him in awe.

Power was something that Azula had come to respect, admire and yearn for, while training with her father. And the power she saw in front of her was nothing short of legendary. Her older brother moved through the katas with grace, which she had not even seen in her tutors.

That proved that they were stupid, but the point was that Zuzu's katas were amazing. He seemed to flow through them. Kind of like water.

She frowned when he tried to produce a flame though. It was pathetic, like her older brother. His flames were still yellow, still average. It seemed almost an insult after she had seen him perform those katas.

If her raw energy was combined with those forms, how powerful could she be? Suddenly, Azula had an irrational urge to ask her brother to teach her, which she squashed down immediately.

Because father had said Zuko was weak. And she was strong. Why should she learn from someone weaker than her?

But as Azula continued to stare at him, for the first time, she wondered if her father had been wrong.

* * *

Out of the corner of his eye, Zuko noticed a figure standing on the railings.

His instincts acted when he realized that it was Azula and he tripped mid-way, barely catching himself with his hand before landing, rather ungraciously on his butt. He saw Azula smirk from the corner of his eye.

"Hey, Zula"

"What were you doing?" she asked.

It felt strange, talking to the person who had tried to kill you not just once, but several times. He wondered if that was how the rest of the gang had felt about him joining. Even though he had promised that he would not let Azula descend into madness, he wasn't sure how he was to accomplish that. Surely making peaceful conversation wouldn't just solve it…?

Or maybe it would. Maybe all Azula needed right now was someone who would stand besides her, no matter what. Like Uncle.

Zuko felt a pang of sadness when he thought about Uncle. After all, he wouldn't be the same person anymore. He might not even be on the side of the Avatar. And his humour in his letters had made Zuko wince. His Uncle didn't talk like that.

"Some training," he replied nonchalantly.

"Oh"

There was awkward silence, as Zuko remembered how socially inept they both were when talking to peers instead of subordinates. He racked his brains to think of some topics, and saw that Azula was doing the same.

"So… uh… how did your lessons go?" he asked, noticing a singe in her robes.

She shrugged, "Well, I know enough not to light a servant's clothes on fire"

Zuko was slightly surprised. He had thought that Azula would take this opportunity to indulge in how she was the best, even better than her tutors. How far she had come and how much she had improved. Maybe he didn't know her as he thought he had.

Still, her humour was the same as ever, awkward and deadly.

"You shouldn't do that," he said the first thing that came to his mind.

"Father always said you were soft hearted," she said and when Zuko tensed up, she added, "It was just a joke, Zuzu"

"Oh… um okay"

There was another awkward silence.

"Urm… I should… uh go"

He missed the disappointment on her impassive face. He missed how she had been opening and closing her mouth as if to ask him something. Azula bit her lip, "Don't trip on your pants, Zuzu"

* * *

As Zuko took slow intricate steps towards his room, he thought about how he was supposed to save his sister.

Even though this Azula was a little more open to feelings and a little less aggressive, she was still… Azula. Cruel, malicious, calculating Azula. She would still be the person that Ozai shaped her to be. How was he supposed to stop that?

Prevent contact with Ozai… maybe?

First, he needed to understand the problem before coming up with…..

"Zuko?"

Zuko froze.

"Mum?" He turned around slowly. The ever-familiar face of his mother was smiling down at him. He felt a pang of sympathy, after he knew of his mother's ordeals.

He would make sure that she was reunited with Ikem.

But how?

Ugh.

Zuko hated planning.

"Yes, it's me, Zuzu? You look ill. What happened? Did Azula do something? I noticed you talking to her before…"

"No," Zuko answered quickly, "Zula didn't do anything"

Should he trust his mother with his secret? She would be a big help.

"Are you getting along?"

"Yeah" his reply made his mother gape at him.

"I'm glad," she said.

It was decided. He would tell his mother, of his… unusual circumstances. He was sure she would believe him. After all, how else would he know about Ikem?

But, not right now. Later.

Right now, he wanted to relive his childhood.

"I was wondering if my darling prince wanted to feed the turtle-ducks," she smiled mischievously at him.

"Of course,"

* * *

**Two Days Later**

* * *

The banquet table had piles of food stocked up, one upon another, and all Fire Nation cuisine made by the nation's best chefs. After all, the Fire Lord would tolerate nothing less than perfection. Fire Flakes, Fire noodles, Fire mangoes, all sorts of dishes.

The room was lit by four lanterns on each corner and a red insignia hung over the walls like the tense atmosphere hanging in the air.

Zuko's eyes flickered to the empty seat on the other side of the table. His father had yet to make an appearance. He wondered how he would react to him. How he would speak to him. Lying had never been his strong suit.

Still, he needed Ozai's support to pull practically anything off.

He sighed. Seemed like Ozai wouldn't be joining them yet again; although, a part of him could not help but be relieved from his father's absence. From the corner of his eye, he saw his mother reprimanding Azula for playing with her food.

Suddenly, the door swung open and Zuko froze. There was only one person who could be here. And sure enough, the person standing outside was a tall, towering figure, scowling, his long hair was made into a top knot.

An irrational anger bubbled in his chest. Actually, that anger was probably completely rational. It would be irrational if he wasn't angry.

Ozai sat down.

"Good eve –"

Zuko was promptly cut off by his father, who addressed Azula, ignoring him pointedly. He seethed silently.

"Azula," Ozai said in greeting, "How is your fire bending training going?"

"It is going at an admirable pace, father." It was sometimes hard to forget that Azula was only four years old, with her vocabulary and the way she carried herself. "My fire has turned crimson red just recently."

Ozai nodded, approvingly. "You will master the art of blue fire. You are a true prodigy. You will show me this in our next lesson together."

Out of the corner of his eye, Zuko noticed his mother giving him a pitying look.

"Father, if I may excuse your conversation"

Ozai narrowed his eyes. This was the first time that Zuko had asked for permission before speaking to a superior. He was still a failure and yet, the steel laced in his voice was new, different from how Zuko's voice was usually filled with warmth.

"Yes, continue, Prince Zuko" Ozai's voice was considerably colder

"I would like to join Princess Azula in her fire bending"

Azula's face transformed into one of shock and horror and his mother had a similar expression. It was funny how much they resembled each other in that moment, even though their way of thinking was clearly different from each other.

Ozai's gaze never wavered. "Prince Zuko, we have been over this"

"Give me a chance"

"What makes you think you deserve it?"

"I will prove you my worth"

"Prince Zuko, how will you accomplish that?"

A beat. A resigned sigh from Zuko. Cruel stares from Ozai.

"I will spar you"

An audible gasp from Azula. A sharp inhale from his mother. Ozai's expression finally changed. Zuko's gaze was unwavering. A malicious grin began to form on Ozai's face.

"Very well then, meet me in the afternoon."

* * *

Zuko pointedly ignored his mother's protests. He didn't notice the way his sister had clenched her jaw. He didn't notice anything he normally would have.

His mind was playing a memory from many years ago.

That destiny-altering, fateful, life-changing Agni Kai.

He hoped that he hadn't made another big mistake

* * *

Zuko took his stance. Even though he was eerily reminded of the Agni Kai years ago, there were such huge differences. This meant that his face wouldn't be burnt off. It meant that he wouldn't have to go on a hopeless quest for the Avatar.

First difference was that he was six.

But age had never mattered to Ozai, it never had. Zuko doubted it would now.

The second difference was that he was the one who had challenged Ozai. Of course, Zuko didn't know how much that would account for.

But the third, biggest difference was that he would resist. He would show Ozai strength. If Zuko knew anything about his father, it was that he appreciated power. He lusted for it. He wouldn't brand a son with power.

He would brand one without power. One who chose familial bonds over strength. One who begged for forgiveness instead of fighting.

Another thing that was different was that they didn't have a large audience, other than mother and his sister, observing their dual. Of course, that didn't help with the fact that he wouldn't be burned, but it helped calm his nerves down.

This time was different.

Zuko assured himself.

An unspoken gaze and both benders knew to begin, without a signal.

Ozai was the first to attack. He displayed a series of blasts, which weren't hot, much to Zuko's relief. He dodged them with ease. Ozai narrowed his eyes. To dodge was the way of an air bender. A true fire bender would face the fire head on and make it disappear.

Then again, the boy would have next to no chance if he did that, Ozai thought grudgingly. Still, there was no honour in fighting with the style of another element. The _weaker _elements.

To his surprise, the boy wasn't even fazed by his attacks. He must be taking acrobatic classes, he mused. No matter, his failure of a son could not last against him.

Zuko was sweating. His grace was not up to its usual standards. It was probably the nervousness from fighting his father. Again. His face remembered what happened the last two times.

Zuko concentrated on feeling his chi; it still felt weird.

No, no, no.

Ozai was coming closer. He had not ceased his attacks, causing them to come from every angle with utmost unpredictability. Zuko could barely avoid them, let alone attack back.

All of a sudden, Ozai towered over him.

_No, father, I am your loyal son_

The memory still haunted him.

_You will learn respect, and suffering shall be your teacher._

His head felt awful.

_The flames. Hot. Hot. Hot. So hot. Burning hot._

He would be marked, branded, again.

_I am sorry. I am sorry. I am sorry._

Not again.

Just then, out of the corner of his eye, he saw his mother, looking at him horrified. Azula was standing beside her, clutching her mother's robes, a surprisingly vulnerable action for Azula. Of course, she was only four years old.

The flames would be coming for him soon.

_Come on, don't be a pussy, Sparky_, Top said in his head._ Stand your ground._

How? What am I supposed to do?

_I will end it... I will end your fire flakes._ Katara liked to joke about her threat often._ Your best defence is your offense._

You shouldn't joke about that you know… It was pretty scary.

_Remember when you were the blue spirit? You were so light on your feet_. Aang would say wistfully. He was probably comparing how he moved to the Air Nomads. _Every battle you evade is a battle won._

I have always been fast. I needed to avoid Azula so many times.

_One thing we know about Zuko,_ Sokka grinned,_ is that he never gives up_

Yeah. Because the one time I did, half my face was burnt off.

Zuko gave an animal-like snarl, which caught Ozai off-guard.

He grabbed Ozai's burning hand, ignoring the pain. It would scar, but better his hand than his face. Besides, the flames were a lot cooler than normal flames. He swung himself upwards, and grabbed the branches of the trees.

Ozai aimed his blasts at him, as he swung from tree to tree. Inevitably, he landed behind Ozai.

Ozai tried to touch him, and frustratingly, was failing miserably, for Zuko copied every move of his father, a step ahead of him. Zuko had had Aang teach him this Airbending kata, mainly because he remembered how it had annoyed him the first time, he had used it.

_Every battle you evade is a battle you win._

Indeed, it seemed to be having the same effect on his father.

He landed a jab on Ozai's back. Ozai, realizing that his straightforward approach wasn't working, aimed a kick behind his back. It jarred Zuko, but he got up again, like he always did.

Ozai made a sweeping motion with his legs, making fire.

_Your defence can be your offense._

Zuko closed his eyes, feeling the warmth of the fire. He reached towards it, and grabbed it, turning it into his own. He made fire whips, his own version of the water whips that he had seen Katara make a thousand and one times.

To his alarm, his father was playing with real fire. Real, _hot_ fire.

It didn't matter though. His chi had never felt better. It was as if he had cut through chains he didn't know he had. His chi flowed like a trickling stream – no, a river. A river that's dam had just been recently broken.

His fire was crimson red.

The fire whips headed straight towards Ozai. He dodged them, smoothly and gracefully and shot more fireblasts towards Zuko. His flames were now red too.

_Stand your ground Sparky._

He did, and directed the Fire straight towards the Earth, adding his own.

The battlefield became sizzling hot.

Ozai was forced to abandon his stance and be light on his feet.

And there they fought, engaged in a dance. A deadly dance. Zuko's agility was like the wind, but Ozai couldn't be underestimated either. Evading and attacking, in circles, again and again and again, like two deadly beasts.

Nobody would have guessed that this was a spar

Finally, Ozai raised his hand, an amused expression on his face. Both of them stopped, panting, breathing in harsh breaths.

"Very well, Prince Zuko, I will conduct your fire bending lessons personally."

Both of them missed the murderous look on Azula's face.

* * *

Zuko was annoyed and ashamed.

He was doing exactly what he had been doing his entire life; trying to please Ozai.

Well, at least he had different intentions this time. Besides, the weird problem with his chi had miraculously fixed itself during his fight with Ozai.

Zuko had a theory on that. But he wasn't sure. Either way, he wasn't one to dwell on matters and make plans and theories for strange phenomenon. He had his Uncle for that. Instead, he preferred to go with the flow.

Uncle.

Uncle Iroh was still in Ba Sing Se and Zuko had to remind himself several times that he was no longer his Uncle who had urged him to join the Avatar in the Catacombs, or his Uncle who had lost his son.

He was on the side of the Fire Nation. Or more accurately, on the side of the current Fire Lord. He had yet to take his journey to the spirit world and gain the wisdom which made him who he was. He had yet to…

How was he supposed to convince Uncle to turn traitor with Lu Ten around.

And how the hell was he supposed to save Lu Ten anyways?

Dimly, he heard footsteps. They weren't carefully concealed, but marched towards him with determination and stubbornness. Instinctively, he turned around and said, "Toph!" before face palming himself and wishing to go drown in the turtle duck pond.

Of course the girl behind him wasn't Toph, even though she had the tiny demeanour and the stubbornness to match the young earthbender. The girl behind him narrowed her golden eyes.

"Who is Toph?"

"Oh, sorry, I just thought… um…"

Great, just great. It hadn't been even two days and he had slipped up. _Damn it_. Oh well. At least it wasn't in front of Ozai; he would probably have a less hard time convincing a four-year old than his suspicious father.

"Who is Toph?"

Zuko quickly amended, "I meant tough. Not Toph. You misheard. I meant that you were tough. Not Toph. Why would I say Toph?"

He chuckled nervously as Azula cocked an eyebrow. Ugh. He sucked at lying. Astonishingly, she didn't comment further. Zuko was surprised; it wasn't like his sister to drop an argument before winning it. Nonetheless, he sighed in relief. Whatever Azula wanted to tell him was more important than a petty squabble it seemed.

His thoughts were abruptly cut off.

"You're stealing father away from me"

Zuko froze.

No, no, no, no. He messed up. Just two days, and he had messed. Damn it. Emotions flickered through his face, ranging from shock to confusion to anger to sadness to understanding. Azula glared at him…

Oh shoot. Since when did he perceive the notion that anything in his life would be easy.

But the words that came out of his mouth, made him want to torture himself and then drown in a pond. He had been having that notion a lot recently.

"He's not my father," he growled harshly and promptly wished that he could go back in time, again.

Azula looked at him with widened eyes. No doubt, his hard-earned image and pride which he had earned today would be ruined if his father heard about this "statement"…and conversation. But he might as well elaborate, since he had already been extremely stupid.

"He sees us as nothing but tools for the Fire Nation. He doesn't love us. Not really. Once we have outlived our usefulness, we will be discarded. Disposed of," he said angrily. There, it was out now. His true feelings about their father. Now, how would she react?

Zuko reminded himself that she was only four. She couldn't arrest him for treason. And Ozai's influence was not extremely apparent yet. He could work with that.

Then and there, he decided that Azula would know, along with his mother, about the time travel, after he stabilized her.

"No… he loves me"

Zuko could sense something in her voice, hesitance. He could work with that. Uncle had worked with less.

* * *

"No… he loves me," she said, almost meekly.

Then, she mentally slapped herself. Why was her voice so pathetic? Especially in front of her pathetic brother? She wasn't supposed to show weakness. That's what father had told her. She had to be perfect.

Always perfect.

She was born lucky.

_But, why?_ A traitorous part of her said. Why couldn't she cry? Why couldn't she show her tears and hug her father like Zuzu hugged mother. A pang of jealousy shot through her heart. She felt so jealous of Zuko. Even still, about what Zuko said about father, Azula couldn't help but agree.

Azula was a child well beyond her years. Yet, like any child, she yearned for her father's approval. Her observance had made her notice the way Ozai looked at her. It wasn't like how mother looked at Zuzu. He wasn't seeing her, but an object. A weapon. A weapon of mass destruction that he now possessed.

But right now, she didn't care. Zuko was still taking away her father away from her. And he gave the most attention to her. He was the only one who paid any attention to her.

"No, he doesn't," Zuko urged her.

And suddenly, her mind was filled with anger. How dare he? How dare he take away the one person who appreciated her? How dare he? Who was he to comment on her relationship with father? Who was he to tell her that father didn't love her? Who was he to…?

"You already have mother!" she yelled, "Why do you want father too?"

Her brother flinched. "Wha – Is that what this is about?"

She missed the pity in his eyes.

"Yes! Mother already spends so much time with you," she turned around, "How could you possibly want more?" She practically demanded, with unshed tears in her eyes.

Zuko grabbed her shoulders and made her face him.

"Mom loves you," he said, "Mom loves the both of us equally"

"Sure doesn't seem like it to me," she said bitterly.

Memories passed through Zuko's head. My own mother thought I was a monster, she had said in the campfire. So, this was what it had been all about.

The fact that she had so readily agreed to help while they were searching for Ursa.

The resentment she carried towards their mother.

"Azula?" he said coolly with the intention of coming clean, "Look, our dad… our dad is a monster"

After all, it wasn't a secret what he thought.

"And mum loves you"

When Azula opened her mouth to protest, he added, "Even if she doesn't, I will always love you" Even if you go insane and try to kill me. Even then, I will still try to save you.

Because you are my sister.

He enveloped her in a hug

Azula cried that day like she had never before.

* * *

Zuko went straight to bed after that ordeal. His robes felt sticky from Azula's tears but he didn't mind it though. He would be heartless to mind that petty little thing after Azula had poured out her heart to him.

Ozai would have been annoyed, he thought darkly.

But still, it was the most vulnerable he had ever seen Azula be. His resentment towards her bending and her ability to tease Zuko about it at every turn had drifted both the siblings apart. But Azula was still four.

Why did she have burdens like this at the age of four?

With these thoughts, he went to sleep.

He woke up at dawn to hear someone humming a pleasant lullaby. The crickets outside chirped and the leaves whistled. All part of the song. Humming and humming. Blearily, he opened his eyes, to see a figure besides him, gently caressing his hands.

"Mom?"

"Yes darling?"

Suddenly, his stomach started churning. His mother always spent time with him. Always. Always there to pick him up when he fell. And what happened to him when he left? He forgot himself. Even with his Uncle there.

It didn't excuse what Azula did, but it made it understandable.

"You should spend some time with Zula. She doesn't think you love her," Zuko winced inwardly. Why did he have to be so blunt about things?

His mother blanched. "Oh dear. Is this true?"

"I think we should invite her to feed the turtle ducks today."

She smiled. "I think I have a better game for her. For the both of you actually," she ruffled his hair fondly, "You've been coming along nicely in fire bending training, haven't you?"

Zuko flushed.

"And yet you find time to spare with your dear old mother. I'm proud"

"Thanks," Zuko stopped for a minute, "Are you proud of Zula too?"

Ursa sighed, and looked out the window. "I love her. But she takes after her father too much", the last part was a soft whisper, not meant for Zuko's ears, but he caught it anyways. Of course. Now that he knew about the circumstances of his mother's marriage, he understood what it meant.

"I think she can be nice if she wants to be,"

_ If she has someone to catch her. Like Uncle. Or you. If someone would love her unconditionally, without fear._

"Yes, I have the perfect game for her."

Zuko grinned.

Azula would be just fine.

* * *

**A/N Thank you for reading! Until next time**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N**

**Hello! As you may or may not have noticed, there will be a new chapter every two to three weeks. I know it may be a little slow but I hope you can bear with me on this.**

**Its obvious that this story will diverge from canon , but major events (and a few minor), will come up in this story. **

**This chapter may be slightly confusing given the different P. (Point Of View) and time, but I do hope you all will enjoy and follow all the same.**

**Enjoy**

* * *

**Zuko At Ten years old**

* * *

Zuko fiddled his fingers together nervously and looked around. Then, he would murmur something to himself and his back would straighten with grim determination and he would take a few steps forward before remembering something and reduce himself to incoherent mumblings again.

Master Piandao was most amused by this display of nervousness that the ten-year old displayed. It was most unusual. Usually, when someone as young as him came to his institution, they would be turned out immediately because they were probably chasing ideal dreams and would come charging at him like a typical firebender, telling him things like – _I want to be a great sword-master _or _I will be a great sword-master _or, the worst offender, _I am a greater sword-master than you._

They were quickly driven out of the door.

But this young man, he had potential. He could see it in his eyes. They weren't those of an arrogant wannabe, but of a determined young lad who wanted to pursue his goals.

Piandao wondered if, after five years of joining the White Lotus, he had finally found a student to train in this young lad who was the grand-son of the Fire Lord?

Zuko paced up and down. He was nervous, he knew that. Perhaps because in his previous time (Previous life? Whatever!), he had been ignored by Piandao quite brutally. He had had to try three times until Piandao finally accepted him as an apprentice.

Zuko, before, had thought that this was because of his status as a prince and the influence and will of his father that he had gotten the position.

But now, he wasn't so sure. Why? Because Ozai had disapproved, quite lividly, to his decision of learning the art of the sword. And Zuko knew that Ozai wouldn't do anything for his son out of the goodness of his heart.

So why had Piandao accepted him all those years ago?

Perhaps he would never know.

And then, he thought if he would get rejected again this time.

It didn't really matter now.

He just wanted to teach Sokka to use his space sword much better. He and Sokka, his surrogate older brother who annoyed him at every given opportunity, sparred all the time. But Sokka had never learnt everything. He was too busy with his Councilman duties and much more interested in politics to go for that branch.

But learning the sword would make it much easier to beat the Fire Nation without casualties.

So that's why, Zuko was standing outside Piandao's institution, fretting about the standards he needed to meet in order to please him. He knew how Sokka had gotten in, but plain pride stood in the way of him copying Sokka.

Besides, he wanted to do this his way.

And his way was to swing it.

To Zuko's credit, he did have a vague basis of a plan in mind. There were going to be a few activities. And if Piandao was in the White Lotus Society, this might work out.

At least, Zuko hoped it did.

He was ushered in by a man (was his name actually Fat?) and led towards Piandao. Along the way, the man (Fat?) whispered to him about not getting his hopes up and that he was too young and the rest Zuko tuned out. Because this exact man (Fat?) had given him this exact speech last time he had been here. And it did little to raise his confidence.

Master Piandao regarded him with a calculating gaze with Zuko scrubbing the back of his neck, unsure how to start the conversation.

"Uh… Zuko here," he started. Damn. His years as the Firelord had done little to improve his social ineptitude. He knew how to greet his subordinates (with determination and honour), and his equals had been very few as he was the Fire Lord. His peers had consisted of mostly his friends whom he had warmed up to. But a superior? This was rare.

His master cocked an eyebrow and Zuko flushed. Piandao cleared his throat, and realizing his ineptness at initiating proper conversation, started, "Zuko. A curious name indeed. I seem to remember that the Prince of the Fire Nation also has the same name"

Unconsciously, Zuko straightened up. This, he was more used to. Formal conversation with hidden meanings, subtle hints, suspicions and accusations all masked in a layer of politeness and lies. Zuko was much, much more comfortable with that. Years of dealing with politicians did that to people.

"I am the Prince of the Fire Nation," it seemed pointless to deny it now, "However, today; I am but a humble child seeking to learn the art of the sword."

"Your status as prince means nothing if you can't prove yourself"

Zuko knew that he was judging him. Assessing him. Testing his patience.

He had been tested on his patience far too many times by Sokka.

"And I will. Master Piandao, I would like you to duel me, to assess my worth"

Master Piandao's eye shot up. As if he couldn't believe that he, a master swordsman, had been challenged by a child! A twelve-old child no less!

Agni, his expression would be funny if Zuko wasn't so nervous.

"Very well, Prince Zuko"

"However," Zuko continued, "Before the spar, let us both have a game of Pai Sho"

Piandao raised his eyebrow in interest, replying, "I am surprised one as young as you knows to play the game of complex wits and strategies"

Zuko chuckled at that, "True. I had had a distaste of the game for a few years before warming up to it. I am, in no means very good, but I hope I can provide a good challenge"

"Okay, my Prince. Let me bring the Pai Sho board"

"I will make us both a cup of tea"

Piandao wasn't even surprised at that. This twelve-year old had just challenged him to a spar and offered to play Pai Sho with him. Why wouldn't he know how to make tea?

Meanwhile, Zuko was smirking as he boiled the kettle. Oh yes, this was much, much better than last time.

* * *

**When Azula is seven**

* * *

Azula had found and made two best friends in the Royal Academy for Girls.

Although the young girl was a lot more empathetic than her previous incarnation, her cynicism, rationality and mind hadn't dwindled. Each step she took was precise, calculative and decisive; reaping the maximum benefits in the least amount of time. It would be profitable to only her, unless she deemed it otherwise.

And the only exception to this rule had been Zuzu and mother.

Father had been an exception once, but Azula had long since forgotten any affection she felt towards the man. She had not missed the loathing that both her mother and her brother had towards them. She, herself, was impartial. She didn't hate their father, but she didn't enjoy his company either. He would push her with constant criticism as she grit her teeth, performing the kata with perfection and precision, yet forced to perform over and over again without praises or any words of encouragements.

The only things that kept her sane during those lessons was Zuko. He was going through the same thing as her. Agni, had she really been jealous when he wanted to join? She didn't quite remember and was sceptical even when Zuko told her the story of how she cried that day. But if she had ever felt that way, well, much had changed.

She knew that training Ozai's way would be much more profitable to her, with much more rewards than the lax firebending training that her Uncle and her brother taught her. Still, although efficient, she would much rather spend her time learning with her brother. He was harsh in his words, but gentle with his demonstrations. Gentle in the way he would guide her hand and fix her stance if she was doing anything wrong.

As for Uncle, Agni help her. Uncle Iroh with his tea and confusing proverbs, which seemed to annoy her brother to no end (much to her amusement), while she was not readily up for it all, was something she somewhat understood perfectly. Moreover, she became more appreciative of it all. She had grown distant and weary of her father, his criticisms and thirst for perfection. That didn't mean she didn't strive to be perfect. Her determination to succeed could only rival Zuko's and the dagger which they both shared, _Never give up without a fight,_ represented a promise. A testament of their ideals, and a sacred blood oath between siblings.

They would both strive, work hard and thrive in their successes.

And she did. At the Royal Academy for Girls, she was the very best. She was gifted in politics. Her calligraphy was like her combat, graceful and perfect. She dominated every subject and often drove others to frustration at their own lack of ability. She was beautiful to look at albeit her social skills weren't so great, but that wasn't a problem since she was a princess and a princess is supposed to treat others as she would a subordinate. And Azula knew exactly how to treat subordinates.

Nonetheless, she wanted to be like her brother. Her mother had told her that she should get friends, the kind who she could see as her equal and peers, and who could guide her if she ever went wrong. When she had asked her mother how she should treat her friends, her mother had replied,

"Treat them like you treat your brother"

And thus she began her search for these so-called "friends" who would be her peers and equals. Azula wasn't a naturally trusting person, so she had handpicked a few individuals who would have unwavering loyalty. She had researched their backgrounds, observed their personalities. It wasn't easy to make friends when you were a princess. Most people who wanted to be 'friends' were looking to gain favour in the court. Her mother had said that her friends should love her for who she was and not because of her title or fame.

Thus she found the two girls who would accompany her for the rest of her life.

Mai was the perfect noblewoman, with her polite demeanour, her ability to pick subtle hints, messages, vibes and threats in conversation rivalled her own. She had the poker face of the century and Azula would have dismissed her as a puppet of her parents if she had not seen her best friend.

Ty Lee, the cheerful acrobat contrasted Mai so much that it wasn't even funny.

And yet, they were best friends.

Ty Lee was cheerful, bubbly and jumpy. Mai was dark, brooding and melancholy. Ty Lee was great at acrobatics and her body was as flexible as a snake. Mai was clumsy and sucked at hand-to-hand martial arts. Her grace was in her fingers and mathematics, for she could calculate distances, vectors and angles and her long, nimble fingers could reach her target in a matter of seconds with precise calculations that was intimidating and deadly.

As Azula continued to observe them, she noticed things.

Mai, on the outside never dared to mouth off and have fun. She was shy and didn't like making conversation. But, when alone with Ty Lee, she seemed to be a completely different person. She was wryly sarcastic and a little grumpy. She would smile slightly at Ty Lee's antics and was blunt and honest.

Azula knew that she could buy both of their loyalties quite easily. She had seen that both of them were not really interested in politics, although Mai excelled at it. They would not go out of their way to befriend her unless ordered to by someone. They probably didn't think they stood a chance. Azula's moves were always intricate, complex, carefully planned and profitable. It didn't matter that she felt a kinship with Mai for overbearing parents. She didn't care that Ty Lee's bubbly personality made her giddy in the stomach and her desire to learn acrobatics from the snake.

Nope, emotions had nothing to do with it at all.

She held out her hand to the two girls.

"Hello, I'm Azula of the Fire Nation."

* * *

**When Zuko is Ten**

* * *

Piandao arranged the tiles of Pai Sho in front of him, sipping on the jasmine tea that his would-be pupil had provided. His eyes scanned the board, mentally dictating in his mind how he wanted to the game to proceed.

He would win. He was certain of that. But he never played Pai Sho for the sole purpose of winning. His ingenious mind and years of experience had already conjured up a million possibilities, all leading to either his victory, if the young man lost the psychological test or the prince's victory if he won.

Piandao wanted to assess the young man. Perhaps, in the deepest of ironies, the Firelord's own son would be the one to defeat him and end the war once and for all.

And Piandao was looking for a pupil.

He made the first move.

* * *

**When Azula is seven**

* * *

Just as Azula, the Princess of the Fire nation disappeared around the corner, the young girl's mouth twitched up. She performed a handstand as she looked at her best friend.

"Mai", she gushed, "Mai, Mai, Mai, can you believe what just happened?"

The other girl was in a bit of a trance as well. Her narrow eyes had opened up slightly, the only indicator that she was surprised.

"No", she admitted.

"The Princess of the Fire Nation just talked to us!"

For once, Mai didn't have a sarcastic retort for her best friend.

"Yeah", she said slowly, "She did, didn't she?"

Ty Lee twitched excitedly, "Do you think she wants to be friends? Do you think she does good acrobatics? What kind of boys do you think she'd be into? I mean, I've heard a lot about her. She's beautiful, smart, confident and just so amazing! Everybody talks about her"

Mai nodded absentmindedly; her mind lost in thought of all the reasons that the Princess of the Fire Nation would want to talk to them. Ty Lee was obviously ecstatic by the idea. Then again, she would probably be enamoured by a water tribe peasant, so her opinion didn't count for much. She would do anything to be noticed.

Mai knew that her parents would be pleased by her trying to make friends with the Princess. But that wasn't the reason why she had this gushy, giddy feeling in her chest and felt like doing handstands like Ty Lee.

Perhaps Mai's life would turn out not to be boring after all.

* * *

**When Zuko is Ten**

* * *

Zuko hunched over the cursed board, thinking things through for once. His primal instinct was to attack, and right now, he felt like demolishing the game and banning it from the Fire Nation. Even after joining the White Lotus Society, he still carried distaste for the game; it forced him to think things through. But his time, his greatest weapon was that his Uncle had taught him well.

Deep calming breaths were taken, as he studied the position of the tiles once again. Piandao's fire tiles were aggressively attacking his air tiles. He could sacrifice the air tiles, for a chance at victory and his hand hovered over his fire tiles hesitantly wondering if he should retreat or attack.

But then he noticed the one Air Tile placed strategically to weaken his strongest Fire Tile (Air couldn't destroy, but could slow down his movements) and behind the Air Tile was a Water Tile, ready to decimate his Fire once it had been weakened.

Admittedly, it was a clever move, designed to trap firebenders with their philosophy of always attacking. Zuko, although never one to give up, understood the importance of a retreat; long lessons with Iroh and Aang on Pai Sho had taught him that sometimes, it was okay to run away.

Years ago, after he had fought Ozai, the voice had whispered in his ear.

_Every battle you evade is a battle you have won._

Agni, how he missed that voice. The cheerful, sometimes incoherent mumbles, shouts and complaints of the young twelve-year-old as he attempted to train him in Fire bending. It had been way too long.

He moved the Air Tiles away, back to safety, prolonging the game.

* * *

**When Azula is Eight**

* * *

"Mum?" Azula grinned down at her brother and mother, both in similar hunched positions towering over the turtle ducks, "Can I borrow Zuzu today? Mai and Ty Lee are both visiting."

Her brother raised an eyebrow to that and her mother looked visibly distressed.

"Zula," Zuko started, "Wasn't Mai supposed to be in a meeting with her parents?"

"Oh," she shrugged innocently, golden eyes wide, "The meeting was… ah… delayed for complicated reasons"

"Uh huh. And you're absolutely sure that you weren't one of those reasons?"

Azula grinned menacingly, "Why would I ever threaten anyone? You know me better than that."

"Azula," her mother chastised, trying –but failing- to keep a knowing grin from gracing her features, "Those meetings are important. You can't just - "

Azula's brow furrowed, which was her equivalent of pouting, "But Mai didn't even want to go! She says that the nobles are all stupid, polite, law abiding wolves who would prey on -"

"Azula!"

"Fine, I won't do it again" She looked over to her brother, who was watching this exchange with an amused smirk on his lips.

"Come on Zuzu, I know you're free. Let's go play with Mai and Ty Lee! Mai especially wants to see you," Azula winked at him.

"But -"

"We would be _honoured_ to have you"

There it was, Zuko's favourite word which Azula had found out and used shamelessly whenever she wanted her brother to do something. He smiled, he knew of their game. If Azula really, really wanted something, she would always use the word _honour_ in creative ways.

"Mum, I'm going with Azula"

Mother let out a long suffering sigh, "As long as you don't threaten anyone else, Azula"

Azula grabbed her brother's arm and dragged him to their usual spot, where Mai and Ty Lee were waiting for them. Mai visibly blushed upon his arrival and looked away. Ty Lee engulfed them both in a choking bear hug.

"So, what should we play?" Ty Lee asked.

"Hide and Explode," Zuko suggested.

"Throw at the Target," Mai droned.

"Blind and Find," said Azula.

Ty Lee frowned, "Hmm, I wanted to play Ice and water myself but…"

"Let's have a race," suggested Azula, "Whoever wins will decide the game"

She briefly noticed her brother smiling at her, almost proudly.

Azula went on one side of the courtyard and charred the grass beneath her into a line. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Zuko do the same. "This is the start point", she announced, and pointing at Zuko's line, "That is the finish line."

The race ended in Zuko winning, Ty Lee second (only because she kind of sort of cheated by swinging across the vines), Azula third (even with her fire propellers), and Mai fourth.

"Zuko's the tallest," Ty Lee piped up, "He had long legs, of course he would win."

Azula nodded grudgingly, a little sore about her defeat. "Okay, fine. You cheated though", she pointed to Ty Lee.

"Did not"

"Did too"

"You used your fire propelling"

Azula scoffed. "Fine, but only because I'm not a sore loser. I'm being it in Hide and Explode though."

"No!" all three of them exclaimed in unison.

"You'll use firebending to cheat," Zuko pointed out.

"You'll just detect our body heat and find us out," Ty Lee said.

"Especially Zuko. You can detect his inner flame!" Mai added.

"You were the one who taught me that trick," Azula told her brother, "Of course I'm expected to use it, aren't I?"

"But this is a game," Zuko protested, "It should be fair to everyone!"

"Oh?" Azula said haughtily, "Then you can't be _it_ either."

"I would be honourable about it. I wouldn't use my firebending."

"Would too"

"Would not"

"Would too"

And before they could continue their banter, Mai popped up. "I'll be _it_, you have twenty seconds. Go hide. And don't hide in the mud"

With that she promptly began counting, snapping the siblings out of their banter as they scrambled to find themselves a place to hide.

Zuko won in the end, not that it was surprising. Zuzu had always been good at hiding for some reason. His footsteps light and almost soundless, he seemed to move in the shadows and almost always managed to slip away without anyone noticing.

"I'm sorry it has to end this way, brother," she said, in a mocking way, "I will beat you next time for sure."

She punched him good naturedly on the shoulder, saying, "However, I will acknowledge your skills this time"

Her brother smiled, no doubt smug about his victory. She didn't notice his eyes wide with pride and his gaze soft, very unlike how someone should look like when revelling in his victory.

"Now it's my turn, let's play Ice and Water," Ty Lee piped up, "I'm _it!_"

* * *

**Zuko at Ten**

* * *

"Most people who ask to spar me are arrogant in their claims," Piandao stated, as a young boy's head jerked up from the game. It had been two silent hours since they had been playing the game. You could hear a pin drop. It was relaxing and comforting, and Zuko had found himself slouching in his bench, enjoying the game which the two were currently playing.

He stared, as the swordsman continued, "What makes you think you're any different?"

Zuko didn't reply immediately, quietly framing an answer in his mind. It wouldn't do to reply immediately since he had never been as eloquent with words as his sister.

Once again, he found himself being attacked. He mused silently to himself. The fire bender strategy of attacking would be a brilliant move; it would eliminate some of the swordsman's strongest Fire and Water Tiles with minimum losses.

But, he noticed another way as well.

The fire bender way was good, but it wasn't the best for the endgame.

No, the best way to deal with it was like water.

_Turn your defence, into your offence._

He moved the Water Tile, trapping the army amidst their own tiles while simultaneously taking care of defence.

Piandao smiled knowingly.

"Perhaps I am not," Zuko said carefully, "Perhaps I am as arrogant as they are. I will not deny that I am weak, I've always been weak. But, the fact that I admit this, does it not make me different? Does it not refute the fact that I am not arrogant, but merely want to prove myself to be worthy. I would not have come here if I hadn't known that I was weak."

"You are wise for a child"

And the room elapsed into comforting silence once more.

* * *

Ty Lee pulled her hands away from her eyes, grinning. "Ready or not, here I come!"

The young acrobat glanced around, searching for her friends. Her ears picked up a slight rustle from the top of the trees and within the branches. Most probably Mai because Zuko or Azula would never make such a sound. She was hiding alongside Zuko, because why else would Mai, who hated getting herself dirty and wet be up on the thorny, uncomfortable branches of the trees?

Ty Lee's hand reached up to grab one of the branches and she climbed up. Faintly, she detected two red auras. Her mouth twitched into a smile. Mai's aura was never red. It was usually grey, black or slightly greyish white on a good day. She wondered why it was red, the colour of passion, anger or love today. She probably knew why.

And sure enough, she heard the grumbles of her best friend's brother.

"Mai!" the raspy voice complained, "Why did you follow me? You should have just stayed down"

"Zuko!" said another voice, strangely not monotone and bored. In fact, Mai sounded flushed, embarrassed and accusing, "Get off me, you're way too close."

Zuko grumbled, "And whose fault is that?" Then, his eyes widened as he saw Ty Lee approaching and he cursed. Mai looked at him in surprise.

"Zuko!" she chastised, "It's unbecoming of a noble to use such peasant -"

"Ty Lee is here"

Mai let out a few curse words of her own, before clamping her mouth shut. Ty Lee looked at them both with disapproval. How did they learn those words? They were eight! Ty Lee knew them because of her six sisters but-

She took off after them.

In a few minutes, they were lying chi-blocked on the ground.

Ty Lee smiled at them with glee as Mai glared at her.

"And how do you suppose Azula will turn us to water?"

"She won't!" Ty Lee said cheerfully, "Ima catch her before she does. She's coming right now. I sense her aura!"

"We don't believe in auras," chorused Zuko and Mai together before looking at each other. Mai looked down blushing while Zuko's eyes darted around nervously.

"Ooh, there she is!" said Ty Lee before heading off to the direction she had just pointed at gleefully.

In a few moments, Azula lay crumpled to the ground glaring at her friend muttering the curse words that she had learnt from Zuko.

* * *

"Zula!" Zuko said, in a tone that was meant to be stern but instead came out more like a whine. "You should go for the other girls also. They're literally beneath the trees, sitting and chatting."

Then, he wondered why he even cared. He was in his twenties for Agni's sake! He shouldn't care that his eight-year old sister was winning the game. It was petty.

He backed up, as his sister walked towards him with quick, confident strides. She was blindfolded, and she had to catch everybody until the Sun was high up in the sky. Despite her supposed inability to see, she never faltered in her steps, never tripped on the rocks, never walked in the wrong direction.

Agni, he should never have taught her how to see when she was blind.

It had been Toph's idea really; she had suggested to them that they should all try to see with their respective bending, when she had been trying to get Aang to master seismic strength. It could be useful, she pointed out, if they were to find themselves in a situation where they couldn't see.

And thus, they had invented the game, Blind and Find. Katara used to sense the blood and water in the air and body to determine where objects and people were. He, himself had navigated by detecting body heat and he sometimes even heated up his surroundings so he had a better idea of where all the objects were. Zuko had introduced the game to the Azula before Mai and Ty Lee had arrived into their group and she absolutely adored it. It showed off her bending prowess.

"Aw, come on. Consider this my revenge," she said, jabbing him as he dodged, his hands bound behind his back backing up with quick, short steps, as much as his bound ankles would allow without tripping. It was one of the rules, albeit one that Toph had scoffed at, that the players must be restrained somehow to give the blind one a chance at winning.

Azula seemed to know exactly where he was, and he had to suppress a jealous pang in his chest, before feeling guilty. He had sworn himself that he wouldn't be jealous of his sister anymore and really, he wasn't. He was happy that she was strong and undoubtedly on his side. The jealousy pangs were instinctual. After all, it had taken him the longest out of the three benders to master seeing while being blind, months.

While eight-year old Azula had only taken three days to grasp the concept and execute it almost as perfectly as Toph could.

Distracted in his thoughts, letting his instincts guide his body, Zuko didn't notice his sister's strategy. Without looking at him, she crouched down and swept her legs in a circular arc. He was unable to jump in time, and fell. His cheeks reddened realizing that he had just been beaten by an eight-year old.

How had he survived as the Fire Lord for those many years?

"I won," Azula declared, before skipping off to catch the others.

It was so weird, watching Azula be nice instead of giving out death threats. Watching her be a good sport when she lost. Watching her not shove Ty Lee when her acrobatics was better, or watching her not harass Mai for her crush on him.

"My turn. We're playing Targets," said Mai in a monotone voice, "Pick out your preferred weapons."

* * *

"Tell me, young one, do you believe that everybody should be taught the art of the sword?"

"No," Zuko replied.

His master's expression frowned slightly. "So, do you believe that only the Fire Nation should be taught to wield a sword? Do you believe in their superiority?"

Zuko tilted his head just a little, contemplating his answer, eyebrows furrowed. He was trapped, in major trouble. His weaker Water tiles were being attacked by a single, strong Fire Tile. He could either let Piandao kill ten of his weaker water Tiles or capture one of his stronger Air tiles. Since Piandao's Fire Tile and Air Tile were almost equally matched, he would have a chance of escaping if he could manage to get his Water tiles to rescue them.

He defended the water tiles with the Air Tile.

"No. Although the Fire nation is the best nation by far, I do not believe that any nation is inferior or superior. Indeed, if we were superior to every nation, would we not have conquered Ba Sing Se? Why do the Northern water tribes give us so much trouble? I feel my nation is the best only due to personal reasons, not because I mean to disrespect others. That is one point where my father and I do not agree"

"Ah," Piandao nodded, "I share your beliefs."

His Air tile was saved by two Water Tiles. Piandao smiled briefly, as he set the Fire tile to follow the Air tile around.

His Water Tiles in the north of the game were getting much more powerful. As luck would have it, he had lost most of his Fire Tiles, while Piandao had lost almost all of the Tiles of the other nations

He moved the Air Tile and two Water Tiles to Kyoshi islands, in hopes to get shelter. Most of the Earth tiles there were high levelled and one of his water tiles gained a level as well.

Piandao's Fire Tile attacked Kyoshi Islands, as Zuko defended with his Earth Tiles and moved the Water and Air Tile to safety.

One of his Earth tiles in Gaoling was at the highest level, so he made it join the two Water Tiles and Air Tile to give them an extra layer of defence. His Water Tiles in the North Pole were getting extremely powerful. But so was the army that Piandao's Fire Tiles were creating. It would only be a matter of time before they attacked one of his strongest strongholds.

He guided his two Water Tiles and Air Tile towards the North to level them up. Piandao's Fire Tile gave them a lot of trouble, but he managed to evade and level the three tiles up slowly with each miraculous escape.

The Air Tile found a very high level Air Tile and levelled up, as Piandao decided to have a much, much stronger Fire Tile pursue them instead of the Fire Tile at the start. Since it was left defenseless, Zuko captured the Fire Tile by one of his Earth Tiles. If Piandao didn't rescue the Fire Tile within twenty moves, the Fire Tile would become Zuko's.

Piandao opted to instead attack the Water Tiles at the north, but failed. There was only one casualty and his two Water Tiles were now extremely high level. In ten moves, the Fire Tile which chased them would become Zuko's.

Piandao chose to take a risk. He took his second strongest Fire Tile and maneuvered his way to Ba Sing Se and managed to capture the Dai Li, Zuko's strongest Earth Benders. He also decided to attack the Fire Nation Palace, where Piandao's strongest Fire Tile resided. If he managed to kill it, then the game would be over.

Unfortunately, the attack failed and several of his Tiles were captured. The Fire Tile that had chased his tiles at the beginning was now his.

Slowly, he rescued his Tiles one by one, with careful thinking and strategy. His Air Tile was now almost as strong as Piandao's strongest Fire Tile.

So, he decided to attack again.

And this time, he won.

Zuko bowed Fire Nation style to Master Piandao and he reciprocated the action.

"Well done, young man"

"Let us now spar"

* * *

"Pick out your favourite weapons," said Mai in a monotone voice as she picked up her various knives, all painted in red. It looked like blood, but it was just paint.

Azula smiled, "I'll keep my fire cool. There will be slight burns though."

All the others nodded. They were familiar with burns. No fire child wasn't.

"I'll use my dual dao," added her brother weighing his green painted swords in hand. They could use any weapons; there wasn't a rule against non-projectiles, "Dont worry, I'm skilled with them."

Ty Lee picked out various blue painted balls and juggled them. "Guess I'll use these then."

And the game began.

'Targets' was a game in which a person needed to mark the others as much as they could with their respective colors and weapons. All the children panted and sweated, and soon enough, all of them were pinned to the walls with their clothing while Mai calmly rubbed red all over their robes.

"Fine, fine you won"

* * *

They arrived in the garden, and both took their stances.

A whistle rang through the air, and after a beat, Zuko made the first move. He ran towards Master Piandao, clutching his weapon's hilt tightly. Master Piandao made a sweeping arc, which Zuko ducked and aimed for Piandao's stomach with the hilt of his sword, which he promptly dodged.

Master Piandao began a series of attacks, and Zuko began to notice a pattern. They weren't as vicious as they should be; only meant for the pressure points of his body in an attempt to not seriously injure him, but only to put him out of commission.

He grinned a feral grin. He could work with that.

Light on his steps, he made a show of faltering and tripping. The flat of Master Piandao's sword hit his head and he fell on his knees. He saw Master Piandao gazing at him distractedly.

He swept his feet in an arc, which made Master Piandao's balance falter. Taking the advantage, he reached for his hands…

Only to find that, in an inhumane motion, which shouldn't have been possible for a man that age, he had caught himself on one hand and did a back-flip which would have made Ty Lee proud.

Zuko was panting now. His ten-year old self would not be able to take much more. He had to put an end to this somehow.

Taking advantage of his tiredness, Master Piandao came behind him, and before Zuko could do anything, he had him in a headlock, his sword barely grazing Zuko's throat. His wrists were locked together in a firm grip. He swallowed.

"I yield"

Master Piandao let him go and regarded him curiously. "You are an interesting child. Yes, I will take you on as a pupil."

* * *

**Thank you for reading!**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N Helloooooooo**

**Here's another chapter of Back Without Regrets.**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

**Zuko at 11 years old**

* * *

It had been several months since Zuko had been made the very first pupil of the legendary swordsman Piandao. A child might not have noticed it, but he saw the way that the Lotus member was trying to change his perspective about the Fire Nation. How Piandao was trying to sympathise him with his people and the people of other nations. He appreciated the effort, but it really wasn't necessary.

He knocked softly at the blood red door that towered over his short frame, reminding him of his daunting task ahead. This would be the one action which would change the history of his whole world. Sweat dropped down from the side of his chin and his face was contorted into an instinctual scowl.

A "Come in" was heard and Zuko entered inside.

His uncle sat on his desk, a daunting amount of paperwork by his table and a cup of tea in his hands. He smiled, "Nephew"

"Hello, Uncle," Zuko greeted, giving a slight bow to his head, his fist on the bottom of his palm.

"Would you like a cup of tea?"

Zuko smiled. Maybe Uncle was still on the side of the Fire Nation, but his love for tea definitely was not vanishing overnight.

"No thank you, Uncle," Zuko replied as he settled himself on one of uncle's cushions. In father's bedroom, he'd have to ask permission to sit, but uncle wasn't like that. He did not care for formalities within family members.

"You do not visit often. What brings you here, nephew?"

Zuko felt a pang of shame at the statement. True, he did not visit often. He excused it to not having enough time. But he knew the truth. He was slightly afraid of the changes. He was afraid of how different General Iroh was from Uncle Iroh. He chastised himself for it.

He swallowed and asked, "Uncle, are you going to send Lu Ten to war?"

Uncle Iroh leaned back, slightly surprised at the question. His eyebrows rose up slightly, "Prince Zuko, you should not think of going to war just yet. You shall make a fine general but-"

Ah, his Uncle misunderstood. He thought he had spoken with pride, with eager ecstasy when he had asked if he was going to send his son to fight. As if he also wanted to help with the fight and contribute as much as he could to the Fire Nation. Zuko immediately sought to correct him.

"No, no, no," he hastily gestured his hands and shook his head, "I didn't… I mean… Well…"

He took a deep breath, "No, I don't want to go to war"

Eyebrows still raised, Iroh waited for him to continue.

"I asked you if you were going to send Lu Ten to war"

Some part of him wondered why he was asking this. He knew the answer. Knew it was a yes. He knew that Uncle Iroh had little say for if his cousin would go to war or not. That was completely Lu Ten's choice. But he didn't know where to start this awkward conversation. And, he figured he would have an easier time convincing his Uncle from preventing him than he did with Lu Ten. His cousin was sixteen and every bit the hot-headed, emotion seeking, kind and honourable person that he himself was. He would give everything for this country.

"I have little choice in the matter, my nephew," his Uncle answered, then gazed at him wistfully. "But I am proud of the boy. He will be a great asset to the Fire Nation, should he decide to join the army. In fact, he asked me today that he wanted to be a soldier-"

"No!" Zuko practically yelled and inwardly winced. He really did have no tact whatsoever. "No", he calmed down slightly, "He shouldn't go to war"

Iroh tilted his head, "And why not?"

"He might die!"

Iroh chuckled at that and ruffled his hair playfully, causing Zuko to blush slightly. "Nephew, there is always a danger of death that surrounds us. The only thing that we can do is accept it and move on to the important things in life. Preventing young ones from reaching their destiny is like trying to calm down a half-starved Komodo-Rhino."

Zuko almost yelled in frustration and stuttered on his words. His uncle would _not_ be saying that if he knew what happened. If he knew what was at stake. He had seen the look of Iroh when he had returned, announcing the death of his son, his eyes hollow. His expression mirrored his own, because he had lost his mother around that time too. "I - You - Please"

Uncle Iroh patted his shoulders. "Prince Zuko, my son is diligent and strong. He will survive whatever comes his way."

_No, he won't,_ Zuko wanted to scream at the old man, his head filled with insults, denials, protests and pleading. He didn't voice any of them as Uncle turned towards his paperwork.

He was clearly dismissed.

He had failed.

* * *

**A Day Later**

* * *

Several hours at night had been spent, contemplating what he was about to do. He never looked at the logical side of things, never measured the technical pros and cons of something unless the job of the Firelord demanded it and unless a large amount of people were going to be affected. And thus, his time at night was not spent dwelling on the consequences of what he was about to do, but at the change in relationship he would have with his mother.

He was going to tell her the truth.

After hours of tossing and turning, he had fallen into an uneasy sleep filled with untrusting mothers, scoffing sisters and scars. When he had awoken, he decided that Lu Ten was decidedly more important.

He stared down at his mother, and then lowered himself on his one knee, a small piece of bread in hands to feed the turtle-ducks. Princess Ursa's face was lit up in joy, as she examined the animal nibbling on her. He positioned himself next to her and gave her a peck on the cheek.

"Mum?"

Still second guessing.

Still questioning.

"Hmm?" she asked, not looking up.

"I have to confess something"

She looked up at him curiously, "Is it about my favourite vase being broken?"

He flushed and looked down.

"No!" he paused and looked down, "Although I do know who did it. It was Azula. She was practicing firebending and-"

Zuko clamped one hand over his mouth, as if he had said something he wasn't supposed to.

"I mean, no. It was totally not Azula. Why would it be Azula?" he chuckled nervously and mentally face-palmed.

"You were never a great liar, dear," Ursa ruffled his hair fondly, "I already knew a long time ago. Your sister is quite talented at her bending."

He took a deep breath and stared at her with serious eyes. "Yes she is, but it's not about that"

He started telling the story.

The words tumbled out of him awkwardly. He left a few gaps in the middle, sometimes described things too much, sometimes too little. He cringed slightly. Sokka would have told stories much better than him. Toph would have summarised them in a blunter way. Katara would give emotion, her tone of voice changing to tell the sad and scary stuff-

"Zuko, continue with the story. I am sure that your friends could tell it better, but you're the one telling me," his mother said, bringing him back to reality. He blinked, he hadn't meant to say those things.

He told her of his trials, his banishment, her disappearance, watching as her face slipped from shock to horror to amusement. But behind those eyes, Zuko saw slight disbelief. As if she could not believe what she was hearing.

Zuko frowned at that. So, he told her her own story, about the tale of a girl in love with the villager, Ikem. He went on about how she was torn away from her home by the prince, forced to marry him in an unhappy marriage. He told her he knew why Ozai hated him, knew of the letters, knew of the promise that he had made to treat him as an illegitimate child. He watched as Ursa finally, _finally_ started to believe him, the slight disbelief vanished.

He told her of his three year exile, trying to capture the Avatar. The start of his journey, when he hit Kyoshi Island. His travels, his trials, his hardships.

When he was finally done, Ursa responded with,

"Song, Jin, Mai, June and Katara. My, my. You've got a harem haven't you?"

"Is that what you have to say after hearing all that? You're worse than Uncle Iroh"

Her expression slumped over and her palm reached to his shoulders and she engulfed him in a hug. "You have been through much, my son," she stroked his hair. Zuko said nothing. His hardships were irrelevant to the tough lives of others he had seen.

He pushed her away from him and her expression changed. "Do not speak of this to anyone, _ever_," she said, in a scolding voice and Zuko felt a pang of irritation. Did she think he was stupid? He had hidden this for five years!

Ursa's eyes widened as she looked at his irritated face. "Sorry", she murmured, "I just forgot that you're no longer the eleven-year old young man I had"

She cradled him in her arms, "I know what you want me to do. I will talk to Iroh."

Zuko nodded, "Yes. But if that doesn't work, I will go along with Lu Ten as well."

His mother stared at him in horror. "Zuko-"

"I won't let Lu Ten be taken again," he insisted.

"But-"

"Mother, this is my second chance at everything. My second chance to fix everything that is wrong. I can save Lu Ten, I've already saved Azula. I can fix every single mistake that I made in my entire life," declared Zuko. He looked at her firmly and Ursa sighed. Her son could not be dissuaded; he would do this regardless of her approval.

She was feeling things a mother never should. Her heart swelled with pride, hearing about the man her son had become. Yet it also throbbed, an aching sadness that she hadn't been able to witness it. But, from the sounds of his story, she had not witnessed her son grow in the other timeline either.

She pecked at the cheek of the young man in front of her with a kiss. She might not approve, but she would support him all the way. "Zuko, I wish you the best of luck. I will try to talk to Iroh about increasing Lu Ten's safety."

He smiled sadly at her. "I promise, I'll be safe."

"I know you will."

None of the two noticed the shadow on the back of the tree, observing with silent tears in her eyes. Listening with disbelief and confusion. Her face contorted into a frown. None of them noticed that someone had still not come to feed the turtle-ducks with them.

* * *

Azula had a skip in her step, as she raced through the palace hallways searching for her brother and her mother. She knew where they were, all three came there every single day without fail to feed the turtle-ducks and play firebending games with their mother. She was a bit late; her father had kept her in for extra practice.

She did _not_ approve of that. This was time with her mother and brother. How dare Ozai steal her time away? Nevertheless, when she arrived, she saw an unnaturally serious face on Zuko. "Yes she is, but it's not about that"

Immediately, Azula knew that this was not a conversation meant for her ears. She wondered at that. Her brother was a closed off person. It wasn't that he didn't talk; he just never talked about himself much. She grinned wickedly and wondered if she could use the information he was about to tell mother to blackmail him into letting her play longer with Uncle's dagger.

She climbed the tree, as silently as her brother, and eavesdropped on their conversation.

Then she heard everything.

At first her mind scoffed at the story that Zuzu was telling. Time travel? Did he think that mother was stupid? Did he really have such an overactive imagination and stupidity? He was ten for god's sake. Who believes in spirits when they are ten?

As she listened in, her mind a mixture of horror and disbelief, she heard her brother call her a monster. She heard him call her unstable and crazy. Her mind reeled. How dare he? In the story, she should be her loyal sidekick, not the villain. She would get him back for that.

Then, she heard about Ursa's marriage.

Azula was no fool. Her father had drilled her into hiding her own emotions and reading others. He had taught her to detect lies or half-truths. The only person who could resist that magic spell was Mai, certainly not her mother. She detected the slight change in her eyes, in her body language. At first it was tensed with worry, then she slumped slightly, as if resigned to his story. Her slightly open mouth closed unconsciously.

It was true. Everything was true.

Azula's world flipped upside down.

It was one of her greatest fears. Her being a monster. She had never held the same amount of empathy as her mother and brother to living animals. She had relied on logic, like her father instead of emotion to guide how she worked. When her mother asked if her best friend was in the line of lightning, then would she have jumped in front of it to save her best friend?

Zuzu had answered yes at the same time Azula answered no. When asked for her reasoning, she had replied.

"I'm a princess. Ty Lee is a noblewoman. It would cause a rather big fuss if I were to die, wouldn't it? But Ty Lee has six other sisters, it wouldn't be that big of a deal."

The two had stared at her, gaping. Zuko had coughed and steered the conversation elsewhere, leaving Azula to wonder if she had said something wrong.

That was the logical solution, wasn't it?

Then, she had changed her thinking process a bit. Instead of her best friend, what if Zuko or Ursa had been the people in danger of lightning. Would she sacrifice herself?

Yes, the answer was yes.

It still made her feel as if something was wrong with her.

Once they had disappeared, she scrambled out her hiding place and into her bedroom, tears streaking down her face, mouth pressed into a firm line, vowing right then, to prove them wrong. To show them that she wasn't a monster.

She would save Lu Ten alongside her brother.

* * *

Unlike his brother, Iroh had believed in the spirits since he was a child. Growing older, this belief was shrouded by a layer of suspicion, but it had never dwindled. Ozai told him that spirits and spirit monsters were kids stories, but Iroh had always been considered childish.

When he had been visited by his nephew, he had got the strong feeling that Zuko shouldn't be there. As if he were doing something wrong by telling him what he had told. Something was strange, unnatural.

He had pushed the notion away, but it still nagged at him.

Then, the very next day, his sister-in-law came in with less-than-subtle suggestions with an ominous aura to her words. He felt it again. It was unnatural. Something was wrong. Something was going on.

And the day after that, he was visited by an excited and overly-eager Lu Ten asking his father to join the army as a soldier.

Something was definitely strange and Ursa knew something. Dare he say, his nephew knew something as well?

Iroh's brush hovered over the contract for a split second, before his signature was on the paper. His elite bodyguards were now stationed at the same camp his son was in.

Iroh wondered when he would get an explanation for this strange, spiritual feeling.

* * *

Prince Ozai stared at the golden eyes of his kneeling son, filled with determination and shining with a steely glint. He knew that his son's request wasn't a request, but polite obligations had forced him to ask for it. He mused. In the long term, it would be useful to have Zuko learn strategy and about the walls of Ba Sing Se. But…

"Alright, but you will take Azula alongside you"

His son froze, went rigid. "But-"

To his credit, Ozai wasn't unaware of the loathing his son fostered for him. When he had been younger, he would try to please his father in whatever way he could. That admiration and respect was long gone. Ursa's influence most likely.

He waved his hand. "Prince Zuko, Azula should also visit the walls of Ba Sing Se. She will also benefit from this trip. She also has the right to learn about the city as much as you do."

The eyes of his son darted around the floor, his eyes slightly opened and then narrowed again, hesitating. Ozai internally scoffed. His son was an open book. "Yes father. Princess Azula may accompany me on this journey."

"Very well then," the flames surrounding his throne blasted upwards, a sign that Zuko was dismissed. His son scrambled to his feet and scurried out.

He smiled to himself. Ozai was perceptive. Along with his determination, when his son had kneeled, he had noticed his shaking hands. Zuko feared him. Zuko _feared_ him. As he well should. He had learned long ago that fear was the only way to prevent betrayal. He frowned at the memory of Ursa and her letters. It had been a huge blow. It had taught him something. He had never abused his wife and yet…

His knuckles tightened into fists. Fear was the only way to gain loyalty.

It was dangerous in Ba Sing Se, he mused to himself. If his son were to die, that wouldn't do at all. He would be a valuable long term asset to his reign. He needed to be safe.

Ozai summoned one of his elite bodyguards.

"I want you to accompany Prince Zuko with the team that he has chosen. I want all intel on his behaviour"

"Yes, sire"

* * *

**Two Months Later**

* * *

Lu Ten laid on his bed, his sheets made of soft velvet, musing to himself and wondering about his place in life. He had a lot more luxury than your average soldier, with his own, personal tent and his soft bed. Still, he felt a little miffed out at his father for sending his personal elite bodyguards to protect him. He could take care of himself. Iroh was being paranoid.

Then again, casualties for soldiers were always rather high. Maybe his father was right in being paranoid. Lu Ten knew that his father had wanted him to be a general. The job was a lot safer and more comfortable.

But he hadn't.

Lu Ten had never been good at strategy games like Pai Sho. That was something he and his cousin, Zuko shared in common. He was more of the fighting kind of guy. Leave the planning to his cousin sister, Azula. She was a true prodigy in that field.

That's why he had not become a general. He wanted to offer his complete services to the Fire Nation, his full potential. He would never be able to do that as a general.

He got up and picked up his Dual Dao swords. Truthfully, this journey was wearing him down slightly. The lack of proper bathrooms, proper hot food and he missed the luxury of the palace. But Lu Ten didn't let these things drive him down. He never gave up without a fight and he would adjust to his situation soon enough.

He laid back down again.

He was about to close his eyes when the curtain flap of his tent opened. A soldier entered the room, eyes darting around nervously. "S-sire. There is an attack-"

Before the guard could finish, Lu Ten sprang from the bed, dual dao in his hands, awake and alert. He saw the guard swallow and patted his shoulder.

"Relax soldier. We're both of the same rank. Let's skip the formalities."

The soldier visibly relaxed and they both headed out, one of Lu Ten's swords on the front, ready to attack and one on the back, poised to defend.

* * *

Azula hadn't expected it to be so easy to accompany Zuko. In her head were plans to sneak out of the palace, stowing on Zuko's ship or blackmailing one of the guards into hiding her. She had never expected her father to insist on her going alongside her brother. Still, it made Azula's job much easier so she wasn't complaining.

She watched as her brother scrambled to pack his bags. She rolled her eyes. Zuzu was just as messy as ever. Her bags were perfect and neatly organized, packed days before.

Finally, after several minutes he got up and smiled at her sheepishly, "Sorry to keep you waiting, Zula"

Hearing his voice, her amused smile turned into a frown. His voice echoed in her head, telling her she was a monster. "You take way too long,'' she snapped, a bit harshly, "Let's go", and she stalked off. She didn't have to turn around to look at the hurt look on her brother's face.

Deep down, she knew her anger was irrational. That Azula was a different Azula. One tainted by their father. She respected Ozai, sure, but she never felt love for him as she did her mother and brother. Wasn't that a big change? She would _never_ shoot lightning at her brother.

She was different.

They boarded their carriages pulled by the Komodo-rhinos. A gruff voice that undoubtedly belonged to the rider of the rhinos beckoned them.

"You alright, Master? Miss?"

Before she could snap at him for disrespect, (no one spoke to her like that! Informally and without the proper use of language etiquette. And her title wasn't Miss, it was Princess Azula.), her brother interrupted.

"Yeah, Lieutenant Jee, we're fine."

He spoke with him as if he were familiar with him. As if… Azula's eyes widened as she remembered his story.

Jee tilted his head, "I'm not a lieutenant, sire,"

Zuko flushed visibly and Azula face palmed. She would have never made the mistake. "If I may ask, how is it that you know my name and not my title?"

The engines of the ships whirred and whizzed to life. And Zuko stammered and stuttered, trying to come up with a feasible excuse. Was he seriously in his twenties? Azula cleared her throat.

"My brother had been going through the names of those he would travel with. There is a Jee in another ship as well who we are well acquainted with. It was merely a slip of the tongue"

Her brother gave her a grateful smile as the Jee nodded. "Ah." And they settled into a comfortable silence.

Zuko nudged her and whispered, "Thanks for that."

"Anytime," she waved it off, "You inarticulateness is absolutely adorable. That aside, you did good research. I'm surprised you knew his name."

"Uh yeah," he chuckled nervously.

"You know," she started casually, "The place we're camping at is located extremely near Lu Ten's camp."

Zuko tensed all over. Eyes widened. "How do you- I mean, really? I didn't know that?"

His attempts at lying were cringe-worthy. It came out more as a question than a statement.

"Why are Ty Lee and Mai friends with me?"

Her abrupt change of subject startled him. "Oh, uh. That's because they really like you, Zula."

One of the best things about her brother was that since he was terrible at lying, Azula never had to wonder about second intentions and lies with him. She could trust him. But after finding out what he had been keeping secret for the last five years, you couldn't blame her for being paranoid.

Even if his words were sincere, Azula's next statement was bitter and shaking. "Are they afraid of me?"

He narrowed his eyes. Her brother, although awkward and adorable and inarticulate, he wasn't stupid. The gears were starting to turn in his head. Figuring it out slowly.

"No," he said confidently, "Mai and Ty Lee aren't afraid of you"

"Then why do they stay with me?"

Zuko took a deep breath and his eyes softened.

"Really, I think you should ask them that. But I know why they stay with you. Ty Lee admires you; she thinks you're confident, beautiful and smart. She respects you as a friend. But," he paused, "I think she loves spending time with you because you love spending time with her. You treat her like she's special, unique. You never got her confused with her sisters."

Azula smiled weakly, "It's hard not to. That girl's bubbly personality is very strange"

"Exactly!" Zuko nodded, "And Mai. Mai likes you because you accept her. Even if you're a princess, the pinnacle of politeness, you accept her wry sarcastic remarks, you never tell her to control herself in front of you. You never tell her to keep quiet and you always ask her opinion on a matter and force her to be herself."

Azula relaxed her posture. A genuine smile on her lips. She looked at her brother, "I think she also likes me because I'm your sister."

Zuko blushed at that.

A quiet silence filled the room. It was several minutes before he spoke.

"You weren't there feeding the turtle ducks," he said quietly, "You know, don't you?"

Azula looked down, "Yeah. But I'll support you no matter what."

Zuko thanked her gratefully for that. He almost missed her next words.

"I would jump in front of lightning to save you"


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N Another Chapter People!**

**Enjoy**

* * *

It was finally the day on which Lu Ten would be assassinated. Two shadows trailed the branches near the camps of the royal; silent and unnoticed. The guards who were supposed to be watching out for new threats were chatting lively, grins on their faces. Zuko berated them for ignoring their job silently in his head. Azula, however, was not so silent.

"These dunderheads," she scoffed, "They're letting two children sneak up behind them. What if we were assassins? They would have been toast. I can see them breaking a hundred protocols; they should be fired for their insolence!"

"Azula," her brother said in a slightly scolding voice, "They'll hear us"

He paused for a moment, "Although you're right. They really shouldn't ignore their job like this. It cost Lu Ten his life last time."

Azula sighed, "Even the elites don't notice us. We really have become ninjas, haven't we?"

Zuko tilted his head, amused, "At least the elites are following protocol."

"They're the only ones," Azula said from under her breath.

They stood there in the trees for a few hours, munching on Fire flake snacks, yawning and teasing each other. Even after the conversation last night, there was little to no tension between them. Azula had already come to terms with the fact that her brother was a time-travelling freak a month ago.

"So," she nudged him, "Tell me about your peasant friends."

"Zula!" hissed Zuko.

She rolled her eyes, "Fine, tell me about your friends who are most definitely _not_ peasants"

"Well, first there's Aang, who is the Avatar…"

"Is he a cranky old dude like we read in the history books?" Azula asked, even though she already knew the answer. Her brother shook his head.

"No actually. He's a peace loving monk who refused to kill the person who wanted to destroy the world," his eyes glazed over, "At first I thought he was idealistic and naive. It was only later that I realized that idealism was exactly what that war-torn world needed."

"Oh?" Azula raised an eyebrow, "Okay, tell me about Socks"

"It's Sokka"

"Whatever"

They spent the next hour like that, Zuko filling Azula's curiosity as she listened with rapt attention. They discussed everything, and Zuko felt as if a weight was lifted off of his shoulders. He hated lying. And it was what he had been doing for the last five years. It felt good to tell the truth for once.

They never approached the topic of different world-Azula though.

"Intruders!" a gruff voice bellowed, busting them out of their conversation as they froze, rigid. They both looked down, praying that the intruders were them. Zuko followed the guard's line of sight and watched as Azula did the same.

The guard wasn't pointing at them.

He was pointing at the horizon.

They weren't the intruders.

The siblings' eyes widened. This was not a subtle assassination. It was an ambush by a huge army. Not even the elite-bodyguards stood a chance against these. Numbers would overwhelm them. They definitely didn't stand a chance.

Cursing, Zuko donned on his blue spirit mask and took out another from his bag and giving it to Azula. She eyed it with raised eyebrows and he shrugged.

"No one's going to take a bunch of kids seriously. But they might trust in spirits"

Azula nodded and put on the mask. It was the same as Zuko's, except it was red in colour and the character was wearing a melodramatic scowl instead of Zuko's malicious grin. They were already wearing their black clothing. Together, they looked nothing short of terrifying.

* * *

Lu Ten stared at the masked little people. They looked like children, midgets playing dress up, except they carried themselves like experienced warriors. They reminded him slightly of his cousins. Both way too mature for their height; he had half a mind to shoo them off. Is this what the guards meant when they said intruders?

"Are those midgets what you call intruders?" he demanded, then berated himself. He was a common soldier; he couldn't give demands like this. The blue masked one scoffed at him.

"N-no, sire. There's an army and these two just arrived and-"

He put his hand up and looked at where the guard was pointing and paled. There was no way they would defeat those many soldiers, and yet as he noticed, they were surrounded. Lu Ten took deep calming breaths. _One problem at a time_.

"I'll take care of the masked… um… children? You go get orders from our superiors," directed Lu Ten. He turned towards them. The red one looked at him arrogantly, hands on her hips.

"So… uh… should I fight you?" he began awkwardly. Speech had never been his strong fort. It had never been any of the family's strong fort, well, excluding Iroh. Iroh was a special case. And these two didn't seem like they held any intention of attacking.

The blue one coughed and began, in a funnily distorted voice. As if he were changing it and lowering it several octaves. It sounded vaguely familiar but Lu Ten couldn't place it.

"We are spirits," said the blue one. His voice would have been regal if it weren't distorted.

"He is the blue spirit," The red one said. She seemed to be distorting _her_ voice by making it higher by several octaves.

"I am the red spirit. But let's skip the informalities. Your fate says that you must live to survive another day. We will clear out the guards and provide a distraction while you escape"

Lu Ten inwardly cringed. Her words were regal and authoritative, but her high voice simply ruined everything. They were most definitely kids playing dress up. Why were they here though? Didn't they know that this place was dangerous?

"Sire, we have been given orders to retreat."

A voice said from behind him, definitely elite. Lu Ten replied, "Excellent, then let's-"

Before Lu Ten finished his sentence, one of his guards attacked him, not aiming to kill, but to maim. His eyes widened as he lost track of what he was saying. He started to raise his sword to defend. His reflexes weren't strong enough. He would lose his arms. He would-

The blue masked kid jumped an extraordinarily high jump, did a somersault mid air and kicked the scalp of the man, leaving the guard knocked out. Lu Ten was momentarily shocked, but years of military training quickly snapped him out of his trance and he looked around.

It was chaos!

The squad that he had been assigned to were all jumping at him, trying to kill him. They were all traitors! Lu Ten's expression hardened. He had been eating with these people not ten minutes ago.

Only the elite bodyguards and the masked children had prevented him from getting captured or maimed, making him wonder if they were actually on his side. He didn't have time to muse and mull things over though, since a sword had come dangerously close to slicing his head off. He narrowed his eyes and began fighting three of his soldiers at once, slicing, kicking and slashing. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the masked spirits fighting as well.

He grudgingly admitted that they both were good as he took out two of his former squad members. He was now fighting the man that had informed him of the attack, the one he had met in the tent.

"You were a traitor," he growled. The soldier looked at him with haunted eyes.

"Nothing personal, your highness. But this war, it's wrong. My young girl… she...," he broke down, giving Lu Ten the opportunity to bonk his head with the hilt of his sword. The soldier crumpled to the floor, tears in his eyes. Not dead.

They ran ahead, and Lu Ten silently thanked his father for his paranoia. He thanked the spirits for his extra life. He thanked…

"Stop thanking stuff and get moving," the blue spirit said in his distorted voice. Lu Ten blinked, he hadn't been aware that he was speaking his thoughts out loud. He narrowly avoided another sword to his neck. The Blue Spirit took out the person attacking him.

"Thanks"

"I told you to stop thanking stuff!"

Lu Ten ran alongside his guards, breaking the rank of the soldiers in front of him. He wounded, and crumpled men; he might have killed some too but he didn't stop to look. The two spirits were working together in a deadly combination. The elites were holding their own as well. Lu Ten definitely wasn't dead weight. They tore through the army.

Later, in history books, this event would be described as the place where the Prince Lu Ten miraculously survived death.

Then, once they were through with the last of them, he finally saw shelter. Lu Ten saw emptiness, a chance where they could overrun them. He broke into a full speed sprin; kicking, punching, slashing and basically running on pure adrenaline. He finally-

"No!"

The familiar voice startled him and at first he couldn't place where it was from. Heart thumping in his chest, still running, he looked around. The blue spirit was running back. The red spirit had tripped and was being dragged away. A chill ran down his spine as he identified the owner of the voice.

Zuko and Azula?

He cursed at them, knowing that without them they would never have been able to escape. Still, without hesitation, he ran back, ignoring the protests of his elites who ran away. He kicked at the thumb of the person holding her. The blue spirit, or Zuko, picked her up. She was bleeding badly from the leg.

"_We are the spirits and we will hold them off_", Lu Ten stuck out a tongue at them. "What the hell are you two doing here? Never mind, I don't want an answer. Just go. I'll take care of-"

A soldier knocked the hilt of his sword on his head. Lu Ten crumpled to the ground. Zuko, carrying Azula piggyback style stared in horror. Mouth pressed into a firm line, he vowed to come back. He couldn't save them both. Azula was much easier to carry. He sprinted past everyone. Everything was a blur. He didn't know how he got out, but somehow, he did. It was a haze of punches and kicks. He lost his swords along the way. But somehow, they got out.

Zuko grit his teeth as he watched his cousin being dragged away.

He had failed.

They couldn't save him.

"Zuzu…," the voice grasped him back to reality. His sister pointed weakly to her legs. "You… first-aid"

He shook himself out of his stupor. His sister was much more important right now. He cupped her ankles and pulled back her leggings to assess the damage.

He felt sick to his stomach. She was bleeding badly. He pressed his hand to stop the blood flow and...

"So, spirits huh?" a voice said from behind him. Zuko froze and turned back. A gruff man was looking at him suspiciously. "Last I heard spirits don't bleed."

Yes, they could help him. The elite bodyguards must have a healer. Zuko's head was dizzy, in a haze. The man in front of him was musing to himself.

"But we wouldn't have made it without you. Master would definitely be dead. As it stands now, he was only captured. He'll probably be made into a martyr. He has a few days"

He looked at them with grudging respect. "Come, Elyza can heal the red one."

* * *

Zuko spent the next day in constant worry, watching his sister grimace, cursing her for coming along in the first place. It was only when she started limping slightly and told her brother that she was feeling fine did he get the sinking feeling in his stomach.

Lu Ten had been captured. And it was his fault.

He took off both his and Azula's mask and the elite bodyguards gaped at them.

"We were saved by two ten-year olds"

"Is our age really any of your concern?!" Azula snapped. Zuko wanted to say that he was technically in his twenties. Late twenties if the time he spent in this alternate timeline counted. "And we were informed by some sources that there would be an attack. We didn't have the time to bring our army and troops."

"Our army?" the guard narrowed his eyes, "Who are you?"

At this Azula stood up straight and put the royal insignia in her bag on top of her head. She said in a regal and authoritative voice.

"I am the Princess of the Fire Nation"

The men gaped at her, disbelieving. A few recognized her face; they had been working for Iroh for a long time. Ones that recognized her fell to their knees and the others followed suit. Azula smiled, forgetting about their situation for a moment. Forgetting that their cousin had just been captured and her leg… Her brother squirmed uncomfortable beside her.

"And I'm Zuko", he said lamely, a stark contrast to her regal and authoritative voice, "I mean, Firelo- Prince Zuko. I don't uh… have the crown… because I didn't carry it but… uh…"

He gestured weakly at her. "She can prove my identity."

"He's a servant," Azula deadpanned, glaring at her brother.

The adults watched this exchange with concealed amusement. It seemed as if the Fire Nation royals were still children after all. They didn't notice a man in red robes coming towards them with a message.

"Lu Ten's going to be made a martyr in two months."

Zuko looked at the man who had delivered the message. The atmosphere had quieted; everybody had tensed, reminded of their dim situation.

"How do you know that?" demanded Zuko, his tone harsh and imposing. Azula was reminded that her awkward brother had been a Firelord in another timeline.

"We have our sources. There is an apparent traitor in the Earth Kingdom"

"Oh? And is the source trusted?"

"We received a hawk from Master Piandao yesterday stating that it was true."

Zuko's eyes widened. This was the work of the White Lotus society.

"Soldiers," he said in a warning tone.

The elites straightened up, some looked down in fear, some trembled but some kept their gaze. "I'm sure you are aware that you have failed your duties today"

"But sire, there was an army -"

"At ease soldier, I do not blame you. I saw for myself how the battle went and you all conducted yourselves admirably. However," he paused, "I do not want what transpired today to be known. I will conduct the rescue of Lu Ten myself. I assure you, I will not fail. You have my personal protection if something were to go wrong both here and upon our return to the mainland. I will give my signature as well as a royal stamp, should something happen to me. You will be cleared of all charges"

The guards stared at him, speechless. A gruff looking man with a moustache, whose eyes were dull and grave, gave his most polite bow, saying, "Sire, forgive me if I am out of place, however, we are the protectors charged with the safety of the Fire Prince. We cannot simply obey the orders of a child playing pretend -"

Azula gave the man his coldest glare. "My brother has seen and faced trials greater than you can imagine. Do you know why he was sent here?"

He shook his head.

"The Firelord, my grandfather Azulon _personally _tasked my brother with keeping the heir safe. This is a command, soldier, not a request"

He backed away, averting his glance. His shoulders were squared defiantly, as if he still didn't believe them. Zuko couldn't blame the man. Azula lied as easily as she breathed, her bluffs were effective; they could not be proven right by any means, but they couldn't be proven wrong either.

"Yes, my Prince. Not a word of this goes to General Iroh."

"Nice save," he said to her, after watching the guards break rank and scatter around.

"I hope you know what you're doing"

Zuko nodded. "Trust me, I do. I once set a ten ton flying bison free by breaking into an Earth Kingdom prison _alone_, I can do it again with you and hopefully Lu Ten."

"You really need to need to tell me those adventures of yours"

"Right. Well, now you're experiencing one _with_ me. Zula, prepare to go to Ba Sing Se"

* * *

Lu Ten was dragged off in chains not to a cell… but to a hut.

At first he had been downright offended. Did they think so little of him to put him in a structure like this? A hut which looked like it had no locks? He wasn't complaining, but he wondered if the Earth Kingdom was actually stupid. Why had his father taken so long to conquer it? They couldn't have had many brains if they were dragging a Fire Nation royal to an unguarded shack.

Then they earth bended the floor below them.

At this, Lu Ten let out an undignified squeak unbecoming of nobles. In hindsight it should have been obvious, they were earthbenders, and what better place to build a prison than underground? It was a place where fire benders could not get close to their source of energy, the Sun and a place where earth benders were surrounded by their own source of energy.

Okay, they were a lot smarter than Lu Ten had first judged. Which reminded him of a saying his father used to tell him, "Never judge tea based on its origins or colour"

"Father, all tea originates from leaves."

Iroh had beamed and said, "Exactly!"

Thinking of his father caused an ache in his heart. He briefly wondered if he would ever see him again.

Lu Ten was dragged across the caves. They were rough and illuminated with greenish-blue crystals. He frowned at the offending crystals. Red would have been a much better colour.

Then he actually thought about it, red would make the cave look even more menacing and terrifying; as if it didn't do that enough already. The greenish-blue were already unsettling and creepy, they didn't need to add the ominous blood-like feeling red crystals would provide. Suddenly, Lu Ten was glad that the crystals were blue.

As he was strapped down in a chair in his cell (a proper cell, not the hut variety), he thought of his cousins. His stupid, hot-headed dumb cousins. How had they even known about the attack? The mind boggles.

Even if he couldn't deny that those two were the ones who had gotten them out of there alive, Lu Ten had no illusions about that. Zuko and Azula had defeated almost as many enemies as Lu Ten himself. And he was one of the best fighters. Without those two, they all would have probably been captured. Still, he cursed them in his mind.

He also cursed the crew he had had; all of them, traitors. They didn't deserve to stay in the Fire Nation.

As he thought these thoughts, he couldn't help but remember the haunted look on the soldier's face before he struck him down.

He shivered involuntarily. It wasn't because of the creepy blue crystals.

* * *

The first guard that was assigned to Lu Ten's cell left with a broken nose and a bruised lip.

Understandably so in Lu Ten's opinion. He had tried to be civil when he untied his hands to give him food, but then he had made a few crude comments about his family and Lu Ten snapped.

Nobody insulted his father.

He had also mentioned something about being lucky that he had not been brainwashed and was not serving the Dai Li.

Whatever the hell did that mean?

* * *

The next person assigned to him was an old woman.

Lu Ten felt as offended as he had when he had thought that his prison would be a shack.

But there was something in her eyes. Something _twinkled_ in her eyes, something which reminded Lu Ten of Iroh. Even her way of talking was like his father's. She wasn't mean, but patient.

"Hello young one"

"Hello," Lu Ten greeted. If she was being civil, then he could be too. She started to unchain his hands from the offending chair. He rubbed his hands when the chains fell away and stretched a bit. Lu Ten did not dare get up even if his legs were sleeping and tired. His fingers itched to have a good fight and he longed to stretch out. He reminded himself that it would be rude to hit an old woman. And he would already have no chance of escape, his escape requiring earthbenders to get out of the prison.

Lu Ten never gave up without a fight. But he knew the strategic importance of a retreat.

As if sensing his thoughts, the old woman smiled. "You can get up if you want"

Lu Ten thanked her gratefully and began to stretch himself. It had been a day and he was sore all over. They hadn't even let him sleep without the chair. Slowly, he began to do his firebending katas from the warm-up exercises. He watched the old woman carefully; worried that she would stop him.

She didn't.

Which was strange.

But then she did something even stranger.

"Would you like to spar with me, young man?"

That's when Lu Ten's world tilted upside down, especially when he was defeated by the cackling old woman.

* * *

"Why the _hell_ are you offering me tea? I'm your prisoner. Is this poison?"

"Not even a prisoner deserves to miss the delights that tea gives you"

"...That's what my father says"

"What?"

"Nothing!"

* * *

"Is something the matter young man?"

"...Nothing"

"You look troubled."

"Why wouldn't I be? I'm a prisoner of war in Ba Sing Se, the most fortified city of the Earth Kingdom!"

"Ah, but that would mean mental troubles young man. I am certain your days at court and gruelling teaching sessions taught you to hide your pain well. Yet your face is scrunched up and you keep sweating."

"Umm… the food didn't agree with me?"

"I _can_ see your bruised wrists, you know"

"And here I thought you were blind."

…

…

…

"Would you like them removed for the night? I'm sure sleeping on the floor would be preferable to sleeping on the chair"

…

…

…

"If you want help, you can simply ask for it."

…

"That's what _he_ always says"

"Who?"

"My- my father"

…

…

"Yes, I'd like it if- if the chains were removed."

…

"Thank you"

* * *

"My father loves Pai Sho as much as you do"

"The Dragon of the West?"

"Yeah, that's him"

"Isn't he on a siege to decimate Ba Sing Se?"

"That's right"

…

…

…

"Hey? Why are you doing this?"

"Because, I love Pai Sho!"

* * *

"Old hag, I'm not a child!"

"I'm sure you aren't"

"Then why do you insist on telling me bedtime stories of the Avatar each night?"

"I thought you would appreciate quenching your boredom"

"You do realize that the Avatar is the greatest threat to the Fire Nation right?"

"Yes"

"Then why do you tell me his stories, shrouding him in this unattainable, unreachable, god-like persona? You know he'll never be more than a devil to me"

…

…

…

"Would you like to meet my grandchildren, Lu Ten?"

"What?"

* * *

"Lu-Lu"

"You're the weirdest old woman I have ever met."

"Have you met any other old women?"

"No. Fine, you're the craziest person I have ever met."

"Why do you say that?"

"You brought your grandchildren inside a prison and handed them to a war criminal who you _know_ is on the other side of the war. Also, that war criminal is the royal of another country"

"So?"

"…"

"Lu-Lu"

"Crazy hag."

"Kay-Zhee"

"Hag"

"Ag"

* * *

"I have two cousins. They are the most hot-headed, reckless human beings in the entire world"

"How old are they?"

"Seven and Eleven"

* * *

"You know… the Earth Kingdom is not as barbaric as I first thought it was."

"Oh?"

"Except for that first guard. He was as barbaric as they come."

…

…

…

"He was my son"

* * *

Lu ten sat back in the chair of doom, as he had labelled it. His fingers tapped impatiently on the armrests to which he was chained to. It was nearly time for the old hag to come and deliver his breakfast. He twitched, his arms begging to fight. When would she arrive?

It had been a month that he had been struck in this dreary place. But his imprisonment was more than bearable. In fact, Lu Ten was now convinced that stories of earthbenders crushing the hands of firebenders were just myths.

After all, the old hag was civil. She was more than civil. She was almost like Iroh in a way, patient and calm with an aura of wisdom and cheekiness surrounding her. Dare he say, if he had to pick between being imprisoned in the Fire Nation or the Earth Kingdom, he would choose the Earth Kingdom.

Because his talks with the old hag were actually _fun._

Lu Ten heard footsteps of said-hag and waited eagerly for the walls of his prison to sink to the ground. When it finally did, he greeted her how he usually did.

"Old hag"

"Lu Ten"

He frowned a little. He looked closer at the woman and saw that instead of her usual crinkled smile, she was frowning. Her brow was furrowed and the twinkle she had seen in her eye wasn't there.

He was about to start off the conversation with a joke, before she interrupted him.

"I am sure," she said as she kept the tray of food on the floor and sauntered up to him to remove his chains, "That you have wondered why I treat you the way I treat you"

He shrugged. He had wondered and asked way too many times, but the old hag had always dodged or danced around the topic.

"I dunno. Maybe it's because earthbenders are crazy and think it's completely acceptable behaviour to let their grandkids play with the royal of the country they're at war with?"

He waited for a snarky comeback, but it never came. Instead, the woman looked at him dead in the eye. "Make no mistake, young man. The Earth Kingdom is as cruel as the Fire Nation in many ways. They are not fools and it is only the fact that I am your assigned guard that you are allowed this much freedom."

He squirmed uncomfortably. He did not like her tone. Although he had wondered _why_ so many times, suddenly, he did not want to find out anymore. He had been so curious, but the woman's chilled tone said that it was a story that he did _not_ want to hear.

The chains came off and he cracked his knuckles, picking up his tray of food and beckoning her to continue.

"Young man, I remember telling you that the man assigned to you at first was my son,"

Lu Ten nodded mutely. He remembered.

"It's hard to tell you two are related," he wryly remarked.

She shook her head.

"My son was not the man you saw that day. In fact," her eyes gained a haunted look to them, "He doesn't even remember that he is my son."

"What?" Lu Ten demanded, not liking the turn that this conversation had taken.

"The Earth Kingdom. He was brainwashed and forced to serve under them because he was a good fighter," she smiled wistfully, "I taught him everything he knows"

"Wait what? Brainwashed? What do you mean?"

The old woman looked at the Fire Prince with grave eyes, "Ba Sing Se is not the place that you imagine it is. It is not filled with armies and people ready to rebel against the Fire Nation."

Lu Ten stayed silent. She continued.

"In fact, most citizens do not know there is a war going on"

There was something, something about her tone that sent shivers up his spine. That kind of emotion sounded strange in her voice, which was usually laced with amusement or jolliness.

"There is no war in Ba Sing Se. The Dai Li, the people who captured you, are the peacekeepers of Ba Sing Se. They brainwash, they mess with _minds_. They can make people forget who they are, and their family too. They make people do things that they would otherwise _never_ do"

"And your son was one of the victims," his tone was dry. Suddenly he couldn't bear to look at his food anymore. He wanted to throw up.

She nodded, and Lu Ten saw a brief flash of sadness in her eyes. He sympathised with her.

The Fire Prince sympathised with an old earth kingdom peasant hag.

What has the world come to?

"But that isn't the reason I was so nice to you," Lu Ten gaped at her. She allowed herself an amused smile. "Surely, you didn't think that my loyalties would change suddenly and I would tell bedtime stories about the Avatar to a Fire Nation prince if I didn't have a solid reason did you?"

Once again, Lu Ten gaped at her. He had been doing that a lot today.

"Did it escape your notice that I asked for the reason for that _every single day?_" He demanded.

"Fire Prince, I have revealed more to you tonight than most of the citizens of Ba Sing Se know about the Dai Li. It is practically treasonous for me to do this."

"That doesn't answer my question!"

The old woman sighed and muttered something like "teenagers" and "impatient". She held up her hand.

"Let me finish my story. I do think that what the Earth Kingdom is doing is wrong but," she looked at Lu Ten, "I am not in side of the Fire Nation either. What they are doing is equally immoral and wrong."

A beat. Lu Ten averted his gaze.

"Young man, I was devastated when my son was taken away. More so when he looked at me in the eye and told me that he didn't remember me," she took a deep breath, "I was confused and lost. I didn't know what to think. I had always thought that the Earth Kingdom were the "good guys", but I was proven wrong. So, I journeyed to the spirit world."

"There I met a beautiful spirit. She called herself Tui, 'The Moon Spirit'. She told me about peace and balance. She told me the good things about the Fire Nation. She taught me perspective. I spent _months_ alongside her. And when I awakened from my meditative trance, I was malnourished and weakened. But I had never felt more enlightened"

"You, young man, have a good heart. _She_, the Moon Spirit told me so"

Lu Ten's mouth was opening and closing like a fish. "I won't betray my country"

"No," she agreed, "You would be helping it."

Guilt churned in his stomach for not denying the preposterous notion outright.

"Your family might not be as against you as you might think,'' the old woman said, her gaze softening, as she re-tied the chains and strapped him to the chair. "The Moon spirit told me your cousin, Prince Zuko knows something"

"What does he know?" Lu Ten demanded.

"I am not sure. She did not say. But should you agree to… support us… then you should hand over this to him"

She slipped a white lotus tile in his pockets. "She said that he would understand"

He doubted that Zuko would. His cousin had always made his desire for helping the Fire Nation known throughout the palace.

Then she left, leaving Lu Ten to sulk and contemplate all his life choices so far and the life choices he would make in the future that might or might not seal his fate forever, either betraying all of his friends and family or drowning out all his ethics and morals, killing them after seeing that the other side was in fact, not barbarians but real genuine people.

Just like your typical teenager.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N**

**Hello and Compliments of the New Season!**

**This will be first story to be posted for the year so I have to admit I am a bit nervous and excited.**

**Thank you all for the comments. I hope this chapter doesn't disappoint you all. (I have a feeling it still just might)**

**So here's the deal beloved readers, I warn you that despite their young age, these kids are way too mature. At least that's the direction I went and I can't stop. My bad.**

**For those of you who read the outline of the story before I got to continue it, I should warn you here and now that from here on out, things will more or less be different. I hope you all enjoy it all the same!**

**Happy Reading!**

* * *

**Zuko and Azula**

**(A/N This follows immediately after Lu Ten's capture)**

"So," began Azula, "what exactly is your 'big plan' once we get to Ba Sing Se?"

The siblings had been travelling en route to Ba Sing Se on a ship scheduled to take them as close to Ba Sing Se as possible; their mission, to save Lu Ten from his scheduled death. They were having a heated discussion on their plan of action in Zuko's room, away from prying eyes and ears.

"We don't know where Lu Ten was taken," Zuko replied, "and right now our best bet is to head to Ba Sing Se and find Uncle. Hopefully he'll have a plan of action"

"You seem to be forgetting about your charming '_Master'_ Piandao, dumb-dumb. What are you going to do about him?" Azula asked.

"We'll deal with him when we meet him. I had a hawk sent out to Master Piandao to meet us at port and accompany us to Ba Sing Se to meet Uncle"

"Is it a good idea to tell Uncle about Lu Ten? Because the way I see it, it works out well if he successfully captures Ba Sing Se"

"We have to convince him to end the siege somehow because it's not the time for him to do so"

"I'm almost sure you haven't thought of this," Azula stated, "but we have big problem. If I have the facts right about your other life, then we have to make a difficult choice. If we save Lu Ten, not only will Uncle not be the '_Uncle_' from your timeline, but the Fire Nation gets Ba Sing Se and the future will have changed completely changed and there's nothing we could do about it. On the other hand, Lu Ten's death means we're back to the way of things from your old life. I'll ask this again, what is your plan for once we get to Ba Sing Se?"

"I don't know," Zuko answered honestly, but the frustration was evident. Azula's revelation was a wake-up call for Zuko in that trying to correct what his nation had done would mean making tough decisions on the hour. Sacrifice the one for the many or the many for the one?

The siblings remained quiet for some time until there was a knock on the door. Zuko headed over to open it and found a guard there.

"You're highness, we have arrived at port. Lieutenant Piandao is outside waiting to receive you," the guard informed.

"Very well," Zuko answered, "we will be out shortly"

The guard left and Zuko closed the door. He turned back to see Azula already standing and giving him a pointed look.

"Let's just go," Zuko finally said.

* * *

**The Spirit World**

Sending Zuko to the past had put the spirit world into somewhat of an imbalanced state. The spirit world had been adjusting to the actions of the young prince. History was erased and written almost every second to put everything into an order of sorts. But this was happening at a slow rate and the spirit world was still in both in the present and the future.

"I knew this would happen," the Earth god (his true name Tudi Gong*) said, "Our actions have caused instability to our realm"

He had known that the moment the Fire-Lord would be sent to the past, every small change that happened before would affect the spirit realm. The universe would do all it could to find balance again. The spirit council had made actions without sacrifice. Or to put it simply, a sacrifice had been chosen, but it was yet to be offered. Agni and La had been selfish in their actions, only thinking of themselves. Now it was up to the boy to make a decision that would either change reality as they knew it and create a pathway for destruction, or by some miraculous step of faith, save it.

Tudi Gong sighed and thought deeply. It would probably take a while longer for the state of the spirit world to reach a sort of balance before the sacrifice is made. In the mean time, Tudi Gong had to send a guide to Zuko to assist in his path. Perhaps peace in the Physical realm would also put balance in the spirit.

"Balance?" Tudi Gong pondered to himself. Balance was something that could appear in all shapes and sizes. The avatar served as the ultimate symbol of balance in the world, but that didn't mean he had to be the only one. Tudi Gong pondered more on this, thinking of the same plan that the other spirits used. Granted he didn't like it, but it was the only solution he could think of.

"Balance of both worlds…,"

* * *

**Prince Zuko **

Once the royal siblings were on deck, they headed down the plank and found Piandao –accompanied by a number of men behind him- in their sights waiting for them on the pier. The master-swordsman bowed before the two (the men behind him following suit) as he said,

"Welcome, Prince Zuko and Princess Azula. It is an honour to be able to escort you to Ba Sing Se to witness the Fire-Nation's greatest triumph"

If Zuko was still his younger self, he would have believed his master's 'skilfully crafted words' and not to mention feel like the prideful prince he was. But given the look in Piandao's eyes, Zuko could almost hear the thoughts in his mind.

_This is not a place where children should be…_

"Greetings, Lieutenant Piandao," Zuko heard Azula say, "I trust that all arrangements are in order for our journey to Ba Sing Se?"

"Yes, of course, Princess Azula," answered Piandao.

Zuko bowed in greeting, "It is good to see you again, Master Piandao. I see you're still in good health"

"You honour me, Prince Zuko," Piandao laughed, "We are scheduled to leave within two hours for Ba Sing Se. We have a rest area set up ashore. If you would follow me"

The royal siblings followed Piandao to a large tent that had been pitched a little-ways off from the port. Once they were inside, Zuko said, "Except for Lieutenant Piandao, Princess Azula and myself, can everyone leave the tent"

The soldiers that had followed them in gave a short bow and filed outside. Once Zuko was sure they were alone, he said, "Master Piandao, between here and Ba Sing Se, are there any confirmed Earth Nation Camps?"

"If it is a matter of safety, my prince, we have a secured route from here all the way to Ba Sing Se," Piandao answered.

"I'm afraid safety is not the basis of my question. Last night, we received word that there was an attack on one of our camps where Prince Lu Ten was stationed. When we reached that camp to investigate, we found the camp in disarray, bodies of soldiers, and worst of all, Prince Lu Ten nowhere in sight," narrated Zuko. Zuko watched Piandao as the said swords master's eyes widened at the news.

Zuko continued, "We have reason to believe that he may be held in one of the Earth Nation camps near Ba Sing Se. Our priority is to rescue Prince Lu Ten before continuing with any plans to head out to the battlefield at Ba Sing Se. What are the numbers and ranks of the men we have at this camp?"

Zuko was greeted with a stunned silent. He could imagine that Piandao was surprised both by the information and the manner of delivery. Not to brag, but Zuko had been a Firelord for a time. A glance in Azula's direction surprised him. She looked at him as though she were seeing him for the first time, like truly seeing him for the first time. Piandao coughed to gain Zuko's attention before proceeding,

"Prince Zuko, this is admittedly grave turn of events. No doubt a rescue for the Prince Lu Ten must happen as soon as possible…"

"Seeing as you agree, how soon can we depart?"

"…however, I cannot allow you to proceed beyond this point," stated Piandao.

"Why not?" demanded Zuko, his composure slipping.

"If what you say is correct, then even you and Princess Azula are not safe. I must remind you that you are still children who are not experienced in the art of war. War is not a game where children go out to play and leave with a slap on the wrist, it's much more than that. I therefore cannot allow you on the rescue mission of Prince Lu Ten. In fact, I am of the view that you both shall return to the firenation immediately," answered Piandao.

"Are you defying the orders of your prince, Lieutenant Piandao?" Azula growled, "We were sent personally by the Fire Lord to protect Prince Lu Ten"

"On the contrary, Princess Azula, I am under strict instructions of the Firelord and Prince Iroh that your safety on this journey is our topmost priority and taking you on the rescue mission for Prine Lu Ten is dangerous and a threat to your safety"

"But…," protested Zuko, only to be cut short by Piandao.

"I share your concerns about Prince Lu Ten and I will act accordingly; however your journey to Ba Sing Se will be cut short and you will be returned to the Fire nation. Guards!" shouted Paindao, "Escort the Prince and Princess to the ship. They will be returning to the Fire Nation now"

* * *

**A month after Lu Ten's capture**

In the darkness of his cell, Lu Ten contemplated a lot; his life in the Fire Nation, his journey as a soldier of war, and his time confined in this cell. The war campaign instigated by his great-grandfather Sozin, continued on by his grandfather Azulon, and still carried on by his father, the Dragon of the West, Crown Prince Iroh. He had been taught that the Fire Nation needed this war in order to share its greatness with the rest of the world that was ignorant of moving forward towards civilisation.

Yet, with the time he spent here in this cell, he couldn't help but wonder why. Why did they have to resort to war when they could have engaged peace talks? What did the Fire Nation have to gain sending her people to war time and time again? It hit Lu Ten like a rock that this was more than just "sharing greatness and civilisation", this was world domination at its best, and it was wrong. His conversations with the Old Hag revealed that no nation was perfect. Even if it was wrong for the Fire Nation to invade the Earth Kingdom, the Earth Kingdom was no better either. But how could he change it all? He was just one man who happened to carry the title of prince and was imprisoned in a cell.

Lu Ten held his head in his hands, frustrated at his helplessness. He was not fond of the actions of his nation, but that didn't mean he wanted to change sides and betray his nation. It occurred to Lu Ten that there were only three ways to end the war:

1\. The Fire Nation won the war

2\. The Fire Nation lost the war

3\. The Avatar ends the war.

The last option was impracticable for obvious reasons. No one had seen hide or hair of the Avatar in years. The first was not all that challenging to figure out given that his father's siege on Ba Sing Se is close to seeing victory for the Fire Nation. But this wasn't right. He had to find a way, a way to end it all. Unless…

A sudden string of tremors broke Lu Ten out of his train of thought. He got up and ran to the door, shouting, "Hey! Hey! What's going on out there?!"

If he had to guess, there was a battle going on at the top. Did someone finally come to rescue him? Would he make it out alive and see his father and cousins? Lu Ten was about to rejoice then paused. There was shouting and chaos going about, which was somewhat testing Lu Ten's patience to be free. He began to shout in hopes to gain attention of whoever was on the other side of his cell. Footsteps headed in his direction, and before he knew it, the door exploded. Lu Ten covered his face with his arms against the debris and dust. When he lowered his hands, he saw five fire nation soldiers before him.

"Thank goodness," said Lu Ten, relieved, "How did you find me?"

One soldier answered, "We were informed of your capture by Prince Zuko. Lieutenant Piandao is leading your rescue"

"Then let's head out," directed Lu Ten.

However, the men in his path did not budge. Lu Ten's instincts screamed at him to escape, because, well, something wasn't sitting right with him about the men before him.

"Well, are we not leaving?" Lu Ten asked.

"Yes we are," replied the soldier, "but I'm afraid you won't young prince"

"What is the meaning if this?" demanded Lu Ten, "Are you not on Lieutenant Piandao's orders? Where is he?"

"The lieutenant is busy dealing with the earth troops. But as of this moment, we're acting on higher orders"

"You…You're here to kill me?"

"The Fire Nation is on the brink of a marvellous victory led by the Dragon of the West. However he is not fit to rule as Fire Lord. He is after all a man of war. Eliminating you, will eliminate his claim to the throne"

"On whose orders are you acting on?" Lu Ten asked, but he already had a name in mind; the one person that would benefit if his father denied his claim to the throne if he were to die.

"Now now, we can't divulge that information here. But take heart, young prince. Your noble sacrifice will inspire the people of the Fire Nation and prove that the rest of the nations in the world are savages in comparison to our people. Now die!"

The other four men advanced in an attack formation. LuTen defended himself valiantly, but with little food and no proper connection to Agni to strengthen his firebending, he was soon brought to his knees. One of the men pierced his abdomen with an Earth Nation sword, forcing Lu Ten to the ground as he bled.

"Today you die a hero. We will be taking our leave and blowing up this cell. We have to make the Earth Nation assassination on the Prince of the Fire Nation convincing," the man laughed as he signalled his men to leave, "Farewell, Prince Lu Ten. Because of you, I, Zhao will be the hero who tried to rescue the Prince"

All the thoughts he had had proved to Lu Ten that there was still more about the world that he had to learn.

_My life can't end here! _

_There's still more I have to do!_

_Zuko…_

_Azula…_

_Father…_

As his vision got blurry, Lu Ten couldn't help but laugh to himself as he felt tremors on the ground. Is this the end? Has Ozai finally won?

* * *

**The Fire Nation**

Zuko was not happy.

Sure his foul moods were no surprise to anyone that knew him, but this time, he had all good reason to feel the way he did. Piandao had forced Azula and himself on a boat to the Fire Nation; and because of their rebellious intentions, ordered that Azula and Zuko be knocked out constantly in order for the crew to have a peaceful journey to the Fire Nation.

Piandao had sent a letter ahead to the Fire Lord, and at port, Prince Ozai and Lady Ursa were there to greet their children. Zuko had been quick to ask for an audience with the Fire Lord, but his father instead had both him and Azula confined to their rooms under the pretence of recovering from their experience at the frontlines. Ozai even kept Ursa from seeing them, keeping her with him at the palace while they remained at their statehouse. It frustrated Zuko to no end that he was here in the luxury of his home while Lu Ten could be in danger.

As weeks passed, Zuko got more and more antsy. No news came from the Earth Kingdom about Lu Ten and it was driving him to the edge. He was able to get together with Azula at long last, and both siblings equally shared their concerns. Azula asked him a question that shook him to the core.

"What if it's the spirits that have destined him to die?"

Zuko couldn't answer her question and only bowed his head. He never really knew the details around Lu Ten's death other than the fact that he died in battle. He hoped that at the very least, given the situation, Piandao would keep to his word and rescue Lu Ten. He didn't come this far to fail. He just couldn't. Otherwise, why would Agni send him in the past to fix his regrets only to come to this?

To keep his mind busy, he meditated, practised with the dao swords and his firebending katas. Azula joined him in these practices, even asking Zuko to teach her how to both wield a weapon and fight with hand-to-hand combat, to which she was rewarded with a dumbfounded look.

"Well I can't be completely useless in a situation where I can't use my firebending," Azula reasoned, which sounded sensible to Zuko, but still left him surprised.

So that became their past time, to train and meditate from sun up to sun down. Zuko had to make sure that he didn't push Azula too far; she may be a prodigy, but she was still his little sister who hadn't even reached age ten. All the training helped the siblings further solidify their bond. Zuko had to meet that he had never imagined he would be this close to Azula ever again, and it brought him peace. However, that peace ended when their mother walked through the door with a solemn face, and Zuko knew. His mother didn't have to say anything because he knew…

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

…Lu Ten was dead.

* * *

**A/N This concludes Chapter 6 of Back Without Regrets.**

**All comments and criticisms are welcome of course.**

***Tudi Gong is the name of the Earth God according to Chinese ****mythology (Courtesy of Britannica)**

**Until next time!**

**Jiang-sama**


	7. Chapter 7

**HELLO!**

**Its been a long time.**

**My hiatus deal is probably nothing new for readers who know me but also equally annoying if not more.**

**We are going through trying times and I hope that this chapter will distract you from all the drama going on in the world. **

**Enjoy**

* * *

**Zuko**

Zuko couldn't believe he was here again, glaring into the fires that consumed the last of Fire Lord Azulon's body. On Zuko's left stood Azula, and on his right stood his father, the newly crowned Fire Lord. He thought back to the day when this all started…

**Flashback**

_When their mother told him of Lu Ten's death, Zuko couldn't believe it. Right then and there he blamed himself for not trying harder to protect Lu Ten. Already, there was news that General Iroh had put an end to his siege on Ba Sing Se and was headed for the Fire Nation. His mother quickly led him and Azula to her room from prying eyes that would report back to Ozai if they saw or heard anything._

_"What's going to happen now, mother?" Azula asked. She didn't bother masking the concern that was in her voice._

_"Oh my babies," cried Ursa as she wrapped her arms around Zuko and Azula. After a few minutes she leaned back and placed her hands on one side of her children's cheeks. _

_"Listen to me and listen well. Your father has approached the Fire Lord about taking your Uncle's place as her to the throne," Ursa confessed, "And Azulon has ordered for your death Zuko"_

_"No…," Zuko choked, boiling with rage; but his mother shushed him._

_"I offered your father an opportunity to take over as Fire Lord"_

_"Mother you can't be serious! If you go… If he… "_

_"Prince Zuko! I asked you to listen and you will do so"_

_Zuko shut his mouth but held onto his mother's robes with unshed tears partly clouding his eyes. Beside him, Azula was silent uncertain of what to say. She remembered all that Zuko told their mother of his past life, and could relate to the helpless feeling her brother was feeling at that very moment. If things were going the same way as Zuko's previous life, did that mean that she too was bound to be the cruel sister that tormented her brother? Did that mean that she would no longer have the relationship she had with her brother and mother and finally become her father's weapon?_

_"Azula, my love, calm down," Ursa said softly, placing her hands on Azula's cheeks and rubbing them softly. Azula's body stiffened as Ursa continued, _

_"As fate would have it, I will be making a choice, the same one that Zuko spoke about. I am not doing this because I want to abandon you but to protect you. I realise that what I'm about to do may leave you defenceless against your father, but what reassures me is that you both are together and have each other. _

_"Zuko. I know with everything that's going on right now, you are confused and frustrated with yourself, especially with how things may not be going the way you had hoped. But I want you to take this as an opportunity to prepare yourself better for what's to come. I don't believe that your actions to this day have been in vain. Right now, the future is uncertain despite the similarity of events, but I believe you have the power to change your destiny and the destinies of those around you. Don't be disheartened and don't punish yourself too much. Acknowledge the things you were able to do. Always remember who you are, Prince Zuko and never forget what life has taught you. Don't let anyone or any being tell you otherwise, not even Ozai. Understand?"_

_Zuko choked before answering, "Yes, Mother"_

_Ursa smiled and turned to Azula._

_"My sweet Azula. You have changed so much. I was worried that your father would shape you into his likeness, but I'm so glad that you are the one shaping your own life the way you want it to be. You are still young and no young child should be pressured into following the desires of us grownups, nor should you have been forced to grow up. I want to see you happy all your days without a care for the world of politics and war that your father wanted to push you into. I'm sorry that it took me this long to act like a proper mother, but I want you to be strong for me okay? It may be hard a few times, but you should remain the strong and passionate girl I know you are. I love you my dear Azula. Never forget that"_

_Azula broke into tears and flung into her mother's arms. Ursa in kind wrapped her arms around her daughter, bringing her close to herself. Zuko stood on the side awkwardly, not sure of what to do until Ursa dragged him into the hug. After much shedding of tears, Ursa took the children to her bedroom where she laid in-between her children as they slept. _

** Flashback end**

That was the last time they saw their mother. The following day, they heard news of Fire Lord Azulon's death, and that their father had been declared heir to the throne. Which brought them to this point where they stood, dressed in white funeral robes, in front of the fire that consumed Azulon's body.

Zuko glared into the raging fire, recalling the events of the past few weeks. It was time for him to upscale his efforts if he really wanted to change the destiny of the world. But every one of his actions, as he realised, would have a different reaction to the outcome he wanted; and in any case he would have to prepare for any possibility. Zuko had the option to request assistance from the spirits, but quickly dismissed the idea knowing full well that he hadn't restored the airbenders yet (and that was a different mission he had yet to figure out).

His reality as of that moment was that he didn't have his mother or Uncle beside him. He didn't have anyone aside from Azula. The allies he would have wanted at that moment were scattered around the world, with a common hate against him and the Fire nation. They didn't have the same memories he did that created the bond of friendship he had with them.

But that didn't mean he couldn't try.

* * *

Later that night Zuko was in his room in the palace. He was seated on his bed, with Azula's head on his lap with him gently patting her back. His sister's presence in his room was as a result of not wanting to be alone, which was understandable given the rush of events. He turned his head to the open window, a portrait of the darkness of his land, barely lit by the rays of the full moon. As Zuko fixed his concentration on the moon, his vision got hazy, and figuring that it was sleep, he shut his eyes.

However, a familiar chill ran down his spine, forcing him to snap his eyes open. A thick white mist seeped into the room, gathering to together into the form of a figure. Zuko didn't have to think hard to know that he was being visited by a spirit. He gently slipped from the bed and bowed before the apparition, very much doubting that it was Agni given the spirit's entrance.

"Rise, Agni's chosen one," a female voice said.

Zuko obeyed the command and stood at attention. Standing in the centre of the swirls of mist, was a pale woman in red robes wearing a wide brimmed straw hat.

"You're the Painted Lady," Zuko stated.

"Indeed I am," she said.

"What brings you here, my lady?" Zuko asked, "Is there a problem in your village?"

"I come bearing a message for you, Prince Zuko.

_The scales of balance are not in order;_ _not in the realm of man_ _and not for the spirits_. _The destination is not as it seems. But take heart, you are not alone nor will you ever be for more will join your noble quest"_

"What does that even mean?" Zuko asked, confused by the mystic message.

"I have delivered my message. It is time I return to my home. Farewell, Agni's chosen"

With that, Zuko watched as the Painted Lady disappeared in vortex of fog that receded into the ground before blowing out in every direction of the room. Zuko lifted his hands to his face as the mist blew against him so strongly he felt as though he would blow away.

Before he knew it, Zuko's eyes snapped open with the sun glaring into his face from the open window. He was back on his bed, in the same position he was in the night before, seated with his back against the pillows and Azula sleeping soundly on his lap.

Zuko rubbed his face with both hands as his thoughts went to the conversation he had with the Painted Lady (to be more specific, dishing out on Zuko a cryptic message). The vague lines of her "message" aside, the ones about imbalance of the Spirit World, he had an idea of what the rest of her message was about.

"Obviously, the imbalance in the world refers to the war," Zuko mumbled, "and my friends will help me out on this quest eventually"

The line that left Zuko puzzled the most, straightforward as it may be, was the one to do with the destination. Zuko knew that everything as he knew it from his original timeline would either remain the same or change to a certain degree, which meant that the spirit's words left him more confused than before. As Zuko would later discover, he would not have time to dwell much on cryptic messages from the spirits, especially when his father had this announcement to make

"For my first act as Firelord, I order a taskforce that will journey to the South Pole and apprehend the waterbenders"

* * *

**A/N**

**I know this chapter is short compared previous chapters, but I hoped you enjoyed it.**

**Please review and leave helpful critics. **

**Until next time**

**Jiang-sama**


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